Can I Stay By Your Side?
by aichioluv
Summary: Tanaka Sana has admired Yamamoto Takeshi for the longest time, but she never dared to talk to him. An encounter with him outside school gives her the chance to do so! What will happen after that?
1. Yamamoto Takeshi

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

It has been a long time since I read Katekyo Hitman Reborn, but I still want to deliver the story as soon as I can. This is actually a multi-chapter story, but for now, I want to publish it as a one-shot… just to see how receptive is the community towards OC stories. I hope you can support by giving reviews or just… comments?

By the way, in case you're wondering, this chapter started between Chapter 4 and 5 of the manga.

**Chapter 1 – Yamamoto Takeshi**

I have always been looking at him.

"… The pitcher from our opposing team is readying his throw…" A voice rang throughout the school announcement system.

Many voices cheered enthusiastically throughout Namimori Middle School, and I joined in willingly. On such a good afternoon, there can only be three reasons why students are not leaving school immediately after the school bell.

One. They are detained by the discipline head.

Two. They have club activities to handle.

Three. They stay to support competitions held in Narimori Middle School.

Today, I, Tanaka Sana (aged thirteen), stayed in school for reason number three. Not that I particularly enjoy baseball, even though my family supports the sport.

There is only one reason why I am supporting Namimori's baseball team.

"And he did it!" With that announcement, students gathering at the baseball field cheered. "Even though it's not a homerun, we are not disappointed at all. What accuracy, what strength, indeed it is a smashing hit from our baseball batter, Yamamoto-kun!"

I watched as the tall boy with short black hair sped around the field and made it just in time at the first base. Everyone cheered and waved their arms excitedly. Yamamoto turned back, gave a grin and a short wave.

"Yamamoto-kun," I sighed. "Only you can be this cool and still look so adorable at the same time!"

A girl next to me rolled her eyes and flicked my forehead really hard. I groaned in pain as she tutted at me. "Seriously, Sana-chan, I don't understand what you see in that Yamamoto Takeshi!" Despite her harsh words, she smiled as she lifted her camera to take a picture of me rubbing my sore forehead.

"Yoshiko," I groaned and narrowed my eyes at my classmate and good friend, Matsugawa Yoshiko. "That hurts. And don't impose your preferences on me!"

"Hmph," smirked Yoshiko, flipping her blonde hair. "I'm not gonna worry about you for one bit! At least I know that I've got no immediate competition for Gokudera-kun!"

"A-choo!" We flinched as we heard someone sneeze behind us. We turned around and to Yoshiko's delight, Gokudera Hayato, the recent transfer student, was standing mere metres away from us. With his exotic features and striking hair colour, I must admit, Gokudera is handsome, but not in the way that makes me melt like Yamamoto.

"Gee, Gokudera-kun, did you catch a cold?"

To my surprise, Gokudera laughed. _You mean this person can laugh? _I stared at Yoshiko with wide eyes.

"It's no problem, tenth!" He scratched his head and grinned at the boy next to him. I recognised the boy. Then again, who doesn't?

"Gee, that Gokudera, what is he thinking?" sighed Yoshiko as the two boys walked further down the corridor and out of sight. "Of all people to make friends with, why is it with that no-good Tsuna?"

"Don't be mean, Yoshi," I frowned. Yoshiko gave me that look that challenged me to try and defend Sawada Tsunayoshi successfully, of which I did try. "I'm sure there are good points about Sawada-san… like… like…" In my mind, I could only think about all the horrible accolades and disasters that followed that poor boy. Just a few weeks ago, he became from famous-throughout-the-grade to famous-throughout-the-school for confessing to the belle of our grade, Sasagawa Kyoko.

Yoshiko had won – it showed all over her face. "Like nothing!" She finished for me with a cheeky grin. "There's nothing good in that Tsuna-kun."

"Well, he helped his class in the volleyball competition." I managed to find something to protest. "Thanks to him, Class 1-A won against us 1-C."

"Well, maybe that's just ONE thing, but No-Good Tsuna needs more if he wants this stigma to end." She looked over her shoulder and out of the window. "The game is almost ending, are you still going to stay?" She lifted her camera. "I have to go back to my club activities."

I nodded. "Thank you for staying with me, Yoshi!" I grinned. "Remember to email me the pictures that you've taken today!" Yoshiko smiled and waved a little before walking away. I turned back to look out of the window and watched the last few minutes of the game. Namimori won in a friendly match, but even if Namimori were to compete seriously anywhere else, I'm sure that they would win.

As long as Yamamoto is there. At least, that's what I want to believe.

Both teams met and shook hands amiably. Some of them even patted Yamamoto's back, probably congratulating him on his almost home-run. Girls ran into the field, giving the towels and honeyed lemons to the exhausted team players.

_Hmm. Why couldn't I do that?_ I made a face at the thought. It will be so embarrassing to go there and present anything. What if he says something like, "Who are you?" I smacked my cheeks at the thought. I will be so embarrassed!

Suddenly, Yamamoto turned his head and looked up at me. My eyes widened – I swooped down under the window – and hated myself for it.

_Way to go, Sana,_ I thought. _That was so natural. I'm sure that he has seen me, why didn't I behave more naturally? _A wave, a smile… anything would have been less suspicious than hiding the minute we made eye contact. I covered my face with my hair and hands. What an idiot.

I peeked over the window. Yamamoto and the team were no longer there. _Oh well,_ I stood and picked up my bag. _Time to go home, I guess._ I dug in my bag and took out my phone. There was a message, but it was from Mom, telling me to pick up the carrots and potatoes from the grocery store along the way home. I gave a quick reply and quickly walked out of school.

* * *

"Uwah! How did it rain suddenly?" I picked up my bag and ran along the streets and through the park. "No way!" I complained when the rain became heavier. "I can't run all the way home like that!" I made a final dash towards the pavilion in the park. I guess I'll have to wait until the rain stops.

A sound behind me made me turn around. When I saw who it was, I could barely speak.

"Ah, you-" He started.

"… Yamamoto-kun," I mumbled. I clutched my bag closer to myself. Words could not express how I feel. Of course I'm ecstatic to see him, but the rain made my uniform wet. If I were to move my bag away, he can see through everything! "I'm… I'm sorry, I thought I was alone-"

Yamamoto laughed. "Don't worry, I was not alone too-What a minute- Here," He took out his jacket and passed it to me. "Wear this."

I stared at him. "But- How about you?"

He grinned. "I'm not the one who is half-soaked in the rain. You'll catch a cold. Unless you are concerned about my jacket having funny smells…"

"No!" I said immediately. "I mean… thank you for your trouble…" I took the jacket from him and turning around so that my back faced him, I put on the jacket. _What is kami-sama doing to me?_ I beamed. _Thank you very much, kami-sama! I'll treasure this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!_

With my bag and my groceries sitting on the bench, I looked at Yamamoto again. He was squatting by his bag, his back facing me. I could not believe that someone whom I have been admiring from afar, was mere inches away from me. _Yoshiko would be so excited to hear this!_

"You… What's your name? And your class?"

My heart pounded. He was asking for my name! "Sana… Tanaka Sana…" I mumbled. "From Class 1-C."

He beckoned me to come over. "Look," he said. I walked over and peered over his shoulder. I gasped. There was a puppy sleeping by his bag. "Cute, huh?" He grinned. "I found him in the park just a few days ago, but I've been stopping by to check on him." I resisted a wide grin. The puppy looked no more than a few months old. Even though its dark brown fur were damp and fuzzy, I could not help but notice its white paws. The puppy looked like it was wearing socks.

"It's an Akita," I pointed out the breed of the dog.

"Oh, do you like dogs too?"

"Yeah!" I replied excitedly. At the mention of dogs, my face lit up. "I've an Akita at home too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's called Chisuke."

He snorted. "That's a weird name." I giggled and explained that Chisuke's coat was cream yellow and white, like a piece of cheesecake, so the name stuck. "Sounds great, I wish I can own a dog." He sighed enviously.

"Oh? Why can't you?"

"My dad hates it. Says that it would ruin his business."

"My mom did not like it too, when she first saw Chisuke. But now, she could not bear to part with it." I looked at Yamamoto. "What would you name your dog, if you had one?"

"Hmm…" He folded his arms and considered my question seriously. "It's such a difficult question…"

I raised my hands towards him. "You didn't need to really answer it…" I said. _Thinking so seriously over such a trivial question, _I giggled._ He is so cute!_

"I've got it!" He grinned. "If it is an Akita, I'll name it 'Jirou'!"

"That's… unusually common." I pointed out.

He turned to me with a half-indignant expression. "But an Akita is Japanese! Of course I have to give it a real, proper Japanese name!"

"So is a Shiba inu."

"Hmm, you're right…" Takeshi fell back into his thoughts. "Then I would need another good, proper Japanese name if that happens…" He frowned and narrowed his eyes. "Maybe… Shouta?"

I could not take it. I burst out laughing. "You are really such a funny person, Yamamoto-kun!"

"Eh, am I?" He exclaimed.

"Yeah, but that's why I like to look at you-" I clamped my hand over my mouth. What. Did. I. Just. Say?

"… Ah!" Recognition flitted across his face. "You were watching the match today, right?" He glanced at me. "In fact, you were there, in that window, for every match that we have."

My jaw could have dropped at that moment and I would not even be aware of it. I knew it! I knew we really made eye contact! And how did he know I was there for every match? Oh crap, does that mean that he knew that I've been watching him? "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to dodge when you turned this way-"

"No, thank you for supporting the team." He smiled. "Next time, just come down to the field and support us. You'll be able to see the game better, right?"

"Eh?" I blinked.

"It's so hard to find girls who are into the baseball game," he explained and rattled on about baseball. I blinked at him. Did he think that I was there because I wanted to see the game? _He can be really clueless, like an idiot._ I smiled to myself. _At least he does not know of my intentions and feelings._

"I hope you work hard in the coming nationals," I smiled at him. However, when he returned the smile, it was not his usual smile. "… Did I say something wrong?"

He shook his head. "It's just that… I have my own doubts."

"About what?"

"I feel a little disconnected in my skill recently. I wonder if I'm over my prime…"

"No way!" I stood suddenly. "You are only thirteen years old!"

"Still…"

I shook my head vigorously. There was no way I could let him think of himself that way! "Yamamoto-kun is an amazing baseball player! Your swings are never excessive and you always hit the ball almost at the same spot on the bat all the time!" I took a deep breath. "It's already a feat to be in the school team as a first year student. You've got to be more confident in yourself!"

I stared at him, waiting for his reply. Is my face blushing? Is my voice trembling? Did I give myself away this time around?

"… You really are interested in baseball, aren't you?" He grinned. "You are even watching all these details!"

I smacked my forehead in exasperation. It's hard to miss these details when your father and brother are baseball fanatics. "No, not really," I said, a little unconvincingly_._

Yamamoto smiled. "Well then, to tell you the truth, I really did not know who you are. If I had known that you are such a baseball fan, I would have talked to you earlier."

I cocked my head at his reply. Did he miss the point? He could be really be that clueless about relationships and feelings, I guess. But the sentence where he said that he would have loved to talk to me more… if I heard that out of context, life would be much better.

"I feel horrible that you know about me but I'm only speaking to you for the first time today. I don't like that feeling that people know me but I don't know them… So, Tanaka-san," He asked, stretching out his hand. "Let's be friends." He declared, his smile wide and bright as if he could chase the gloomy rain away.

I blushed, stretching my hand out and holding his hand in a firm handshake. "Let's be friends," I repeated blissfully.

My hand tingled with warmth at his touch.

* * *

"Ah, it seems that the rain has somewhat stopped," remarked Yamamoto Takeshi.

I checked my watch. Had it been an hour since we were stranded here at the pavilion? It felt like an eternity. It also felt like a moment. "I guess I should get going. Ah, your jacket-"

"Return it to me tomorrow. If you take it off now, you'll catch a cold. But in return," He grinned. "You have to wash it for me."

I beamed and nodded. "How about Musuke?" I asked of the puppy. It was awake a while ago and was curiously sniffing the smell of the rain. We had named the chocolate brown puppy Musuke, after chocolate mousse cake (It was his idea).

"I can't bring it home, so I can only come every day after school."

"Can… Can I come and visit it too?" I asked shyly.

He looked at me. "Well, whenever you're free, I'm sure Musuke will be happy to see some company." He grinned.

"Yeah, you're right." So that means he has no intention to visit Musuke with me. What was I expecting, anyway? I picked up my bag and groceries. "Thank you for your jacket," I mumbled. "Well… see you."

"Yup!" He nodded. "See you tomorrow!"

I ran away as quickly as I can, so that he could no longer hear the mad pounding in my heart.

* * *

"I'm home-"

"You're late!" A voice shouted. I raised my hand to deflect a plushie baseball bat.

I narrowed my eyes at the older boy who was swinging the toy bat. "Did you just try to re-enact a scene from BLEACH?" I asked.

His face was full of horror. "Did you secretly read my manga?" He gasped. "I need to hide my secret stash more carefully, before you find my other… stuff." I groaned, while he continued. "You're finally home, Mom was worried! What happened?"

"The rain happened, duh," I made a face at my older brother, Tanaka Soma. Soma, with his mass of unkempt hair and a mole by his right eye, would be considered good-looking by many girls his age. However, I could not find anything about my brother attractive. He is a major baseball fan, and always made a point in the thirteen years of my life, to remind me. When he is not rattling on about baseball, he will be reading manga and stuffing potato chips in his face. Tell me, how is that attractive? Then again, I have fallen for a baseball fanatic myself, what an irony.

Soma peered at me, immediately noticing the jacket that I was wearing. "You mean, Yamamoto Takeshi happened." He observed, reading Yamamoto's name from the jacket with a sly smile. "While we were worried about you, you were having a whole shoujo manga scene."

"He's just a friend," I said quickly, hiding my embarrassment. "And since when do you read shoujo manga? That's just gross."

"Moooooom!" Soma shouted from the hallway. "Sana was totally hanging out with a boyfriend just now!"

"I'm not!" I protested hotly. "Gee, Soma, you're being ridiculous! Sometimes I wonder if you are really a year one high school student. You behave more immaturely than I do."

"And she is addressing me by my name directly!"

"Onii-san!" I yelled.

"Don't tease her, Soma." My mother appeared at the hallway, smiling. "It's alright, Sana. I'm just glad that you are home." Chisuke, my dog, bounded out into the hallway and also greeted me with a playful wag of his tail.

Bending down to pat Chisuke, I explained, "It rained really heavily on my way back. I met a schoolmate at the pavilion by the park so we waited till the rain stopped."

"It's really nice of your schoolmate to lend you his jacket," she smiled warmly. "Just pass the jacket to me later and I'll wash it for you."

I beamed and thanked her. That is what I love about my mother. She is gentle and caring. Despite having a part-time job, she puts in extra effort to manage her household duties.

Taking two steps at a time, I climbed the stairs and went into my room. Without caring about my damp uniform dirtying the bed, I flopped myself onto the bed.

_What a day… _I touched my cheek, flushed and warm with excitement. _What a day… I never thought that I could talk to Yamamoto-kun like that. _

"Let's be friends." His voice played again and again in my head. I know that Yamamoto's sentence has no hidden motives. He simply wants to be friends with everyone. Even so, knowing that I have the chance to be part of the 'everyone' is more than enough for me.

Who knows, someday we will really become friends… and…

I covered my face with his jacket in embarrassment. _... So this is how Yamamoto-kun smells like… _I quickly pulled the jacket away from my face. _… Annnd I'm officially a creep. If Soma nii-san were to walk into my room now, he will never stop making fun of me. _I smiled to myself again. _I won't forget this day, ever._

_Even... _I looked away and sighed. _Even if I never have the chance to speak to him like how I did today... I, at least, had the chance to see for myself that Yamamoto Takeshi is just as nice a person as I've imagined._

Somewhere, deep in my heart, feelings overflow.

* * *

Now, all the stuff and disclaimers that you may or may not want to read before you consider giving a review. The story is done in a shoujo manga style of writing. So yes, all elements of shoujo that you love or hate are here… hopefully.

If you are wondering, the events of my story will go in line with the events and facts in the manga. Yeah, I like to place my OCs in the canon storyline such that even the presence of the OC will not disrupt the main storyline. Readers of my other stories will understand, but I hope my new readers will understand what I mean too! Unfortunately, I don't follow the events of the anime, so don't be confused by the events in my story. The events are canon, but the OC is obviously not!

Please review if you liked what you've read!


	2. Suicide

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

**Chapter 2 – Suicide **

How difficult can it be to return someone his jacket?

I stared at the neatly folded jacket in my bag. It has been three days since my unintentional rendezvous with Yamamoto Takeshi at the pavilion in the park. Honestly, it was more difficult than I thought. Because he is in a different class, I do not get to see him until lunch break. Of which, whenever I go to his classroom, I do not see him there. I am not brave enough to approach any of his classmates. I had visited Musuke, the chocolate brown Akita in the park, every day after school, but I did not see him.

"Why don't you just go over and pass the jacket to his classmate?" Yoshiko asked, twirling her dark hair and munching on a piece of Pocky. I stared at her as if she was nuts. There is no way I am going to do that when I do not know anyone in his class!

"Alright then," she said when I told that to her. She stretched her hand out. "Give it to me, I'll pass it over to you." She gave a cunning smile. "Gives me a good chance to talk to Gokudera-kun, if possible."

"But they don't even know each other well," I argued. "What are your odds? Besides, I want to give it to him myself."

My friend leaned forward and shook her head. "When would that be, then? Will you wait until he reports you as a jacket thief?" She smirked. "That would be pretty funny."

Gee, of all things, I do not want THAT to happen. "Thanks for making things worse," I groaned. "Fine, fine, I'll return it to him, no matter what."

"And how would you do that?"

I shrugged.

* * *

Later on, I stared out of the classroom and noticed that Class 1-A was having physical education. _Yamamoto-kun! _I squealed inside when I saw his tall and lanky physique out in the school field. They were playing baseball and Yamamoto's team seemed to be doing badly. _Why is that? _I wondered. _Any team with Yamamoto would be victorious, wouldn't it?_

Then I saw the reason. Sawada Tsunayoshi was in the same team as Yamamoto. The highly-famed "No-Good Tsuna" has been stirring up a lot of controversy in school in just mere weeks. It all started with his audacious confession towards Sasagawa Kyouko, the belle of the school. He did it with just his underwear. Just the thought of it made me sigh. What is the logic and charm in that? What was Sawada-san thinking?

Thanks to that, he had gotten a lot of attention. Good ones and bad ones. According to some of my classmates, he got laughed at, more than usual. However, I do not recall Sawada Tsuna being upset or angry. He just laughs it off and usually keeps a low profile. Somehow, I do not find that annoying.

_Maybe Sawada-san is not a bad person either. A misunderstood character, perhaps? _I thought, deciding to focus on my history book again before my teacher noticed my inattentiveness.

* * *

_It's no use._ I thought. I thought that there might be baseball practice today so I stayed in school instead of going home. As it turned out (after hearing from some classmates), there were no baseball practices today. So I thought that I should wait by the shoe lockers to see if I could see him. No such luck too. I waited for almost an hour but there was no sign of him anywhere.

"Yoshi-chan," I mumbled to myself. "What should I do?" Yoshiko had left the school for an appointment. It looks like I will not have any luck seeing him, but it is so lame to just go home now. What should I do?

I glanced to my left and right… and sighed. Might as well walk around the school and look for him myself. I walked through the corridors in a somewhat aimless manner. However, I avoided the upperclassmen's classrooms. I have heard stories about the senpais being rowdy. The scariest of them all is the head of the Discipline Committee, Hibari Kyoya. I heard that he was more like a gangster than the gangsters in our school and he often fought in school. How he manages to stay as the head of the Discipline Committee eludes me.

_Where is Yamamoto-kun…_

Suddenly, an idea struck me. The answer was so clear that I felt dumb. _Why didn't I think about that earlier?_ I quickly made my way to the field. Of course Yamamoto will be at the field, if he is still in school. Soma nii-san was always in the field, when we were still in the same elementary school. Yamamoto, being the same baseball idiot as my brother, would behave no differen-

"Ouch!" I squeaked as I ran into a girl. "I'm so sorry! Are you-"

"No, no, no!" He said quickly. "I should be the one saying sorry!" Oh crap, it was not a girl, but a boy! I opened my eyes in horror, and then I recognised the person.

"You... You are Sawada-san, right?" I asked. I felt bad for thinking that he was a girl! It was very difficult to tell. Sawada Tsunayoshi had such a small frame, I had genuinely mistaken him for a girl.

The boy smiled awkwardly. "Am I so well-known for being no-good that students from different classes know me too?" He sighed.

I knew it. This boy was obviously not happy with the treatment he was getting in school. "Not really," I said slowly. "I mean… um… you were really hardworking during the volleyball competition. Our class couldn't have won against your class."

"Oh, you're from that… that class that we played against for volleyball." He smiled awkwardly again. "Really, we barely won… your class was really good…" He laughed.

I smiled. I was right. On closer interaction, Sawada really seemed like a nice person. "Anyway, I'm really sorry for not looking where I was going." I repeated. I straightened my skirt. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I think I'm good."

"Umm..." I began. "You just came from the field, right? By any chance... Is Yamamoto-kun in the field now?"

Sawada half turned his head and pointed behind him. "Yeah, Yamamoto came to help clear up the area with me."

I beamed in delight. "Great! Thank you very much!" I said. "I gotta go find him! It was really nice meeting you!"

"You too, um..." He made a face. It was written all over his face that he felt embarrassed for not asking my name. I decided to save him from his awkwardness.

"I'm Tanaka Sana, nice to meet you!" I grinned before running past him towards the field.

* * *

"Yamamoto-kun!"

I broke into a wide smile when he stopped his batting and turned to look at me. He gave me a wide smile. "Tanaka-san!" He ran over and unlocked the gate so that I could enter the field.

"You remembered my name..." I said, blushing.

"Tanaka is a common name," he answered honestly.

I pouted. "So is Yamamoto."

"So it is," he laughed. "But that's besides the point. I need to remember the name and face of the person who borrowed my jacket, don't I?"

I quickly produced the jacket from the bag. "Here you go," I said, passing to him. "Thank you for letting me hold on to it for so long. I hope you did not get into trouble because of that."

"Nah," he laughed. He dropped the freshly washed jacket on top of his bag. "I have a couple of spare jackets lying around."

"So what are you doing here? Still practising?" I asked, nodding at his bat.

"Yep, I've decided that I'm going to keep practising until I become better."

I nodded approvingly. "That's a good start. Don't give up on yourself."

"Actually, the one who taught me that is Tsuna."

I blinked. I could not imagine no-good Tsuna giving advice to anyone, much less to optimistic Yamamoto Takeshi. "Did he?" I asked. "That's great..." _I guess?_

He grinned. "He has been pretty cool recently, but he's a really humble guy."

"Yeah, he really looks like a nice person!" I agreed. "Too bad that everyone keeps making fun of him."

"But not you apparently," pointed out Yamamoto.

I blushed. "Nor you."

He grinned. "Because I think he's alright." He tossed me a ball. I was not prepared for it and I caught it with two hands. "Here, practise with me."

I stared at him. "I'm not good at pitching," I made a face. "Besides, I'm wearing a skirt."

"Come on!" He urged. "Just one ball?"

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Why am I constantly surrounded by baseball idiots? "Alright, just one ball." With him laughing in the background, I walked to the centre of the field. I pulled my skirt down as much as I can. No way will I be able to pitch properly if I am so concerned about whether I will expose myself.

"Hurry up!" Yamamoto shouted.

"Gee, alright already!" I blurted out. I had spoken to him like how I speak to Soma nii-san. "I mean, give me a bit more time!" I shook my head to myself. Now was not the time to reveal how sloppy and casual I get with people close to me. I tossed the ball up and down with one hand and looked at him. He was positioned with his bat, ready for the throw. The look in his eyes were serious and dead set on me. My heart pumped madly at his intense gaze. "Please don't give me that handsome look, my heart cannot take this," I prayed to no one in particular – and threw the ball out.

Yamamoto hit the ball perfectly, but it was not far enough. I turned and stared at the flying ball. It was far, but it would not be enough to get him to second base. However, that accuracy of that hit was amazing. "Really amazing…" I muttered. The only people that I've ever played with are with my family. I was elated that I had such a chance to interact with Yamamoto like that.

"Whoa, where did you learn to pitch like that?" asked Yamamoto, as he came running towards me.

"Huh? My pitching is not that great." I hope he cannot tell that I am affected by his compliment. "You're being too nice."

"No, I'm serious. Your pitching is not like the school team, but you are definitely not an amateur." He took a step back, clearly looking at me in a different light. I tried not to look embarrassed under his gaze. "Where did you learn your baseball skills?" He asked.

"… From my brother."

"Cool!" Yamamoto's smile widened. "Can I meet your brother someday? I would love to play baseball with him."

"Yeah, I actually think he would like that." I said reluctantly. All of this just to see my brother and Yamamoto going buddy-buddy together?

"Great! I'm so happy!" He laughed and knocked my shoulder with his fist. "You are seriously more than you look, Tanaka-san."

I rubbed my shoulder that was smarting with the pain, but still I blushed. "Really?" I asked shyly.

"Yup! I'm glad that we are friends, Tanaka-san."

I looked up at him, Yamamoto Takeshi, with his big smile and trusting eyes. Was it the right time? "Yamamoto-kun," I said. "I-"

There was a loud blare, interrupting my words. It was my phone. Probably Soma, or Father. I resisted the urge to look irritated as I excused myself and searched for my phone.

_Sana,_ the text message read. _Aren't you out too long? Better come home soon, Mom is making curry rice for dinner._

"It's my dad," I said to Yamamoto, as he returned with his baseball. "I should go. Shouldn't you head home too? School is closing soon."

"Yeah, I should." Yamamoto ran back to get his bat. "However, I will drop by the batting cage first." I rolled my eyes. More practice in a public batting practice area. That was just like my brother.

We left the field. Despite his senseless baseball ramblings, I could not help but be attracted to him. I sneaked a peek at his side profile. In the sunset, his tanned skin seemed to glow. Even he was talking about his upcoming competition, his voice carried something magical.

"I'm sure that you will improve, Yamamoto-kun," I assured him in response to what he was saying.

He turned to me and smiled sincerely at my words. For that moment, it really seemed that everything was alright.

* * *

The next day, during lunch, someone ran into the classroom, shouting at the top of his voice, "Yamamoto Takeshi from Class 1-A is at the rooftop! He is about to jump off the roof!"

My heart turned cold at the news. My chopsticks slipped out of my hands but I barely noticed. I stared at Yoshiko, who nodded immediately. "Let's go and see," she suggested for me.

At the rooftop, there was already a big crowd gathering. Over the fence that barricaded the rooftop, Yamamoto stood, his arm bandaged.

I realised what had happened. He must have injured himself when he was practising last night. I smacked a palm against my forehead. What was he thinking, to want to end his life just because of this? Then I looked closely. It was not just an arm bandage. Yamamoto's right arm was in a cast. A chill ran down my spine as I realised the meaning and its implications.

_He fractured his arm._

Fracturing an arm is common when playing sports. However, a bad fracture could essentially shut all doors to playing baseball professionally.

"I'll go get the teacher," said Yoshiko. I nodded, not exactly registering what had said.

"Hey, Yamamoto, this isn't funny!" Students shouted.

"You're taking it too far!" Another added.

Yamamoto laughed dryly. "Sorry, but that's not true. After the baseball god threw me away, I have nothing left."

_What is he thinking?_ I fumed. _He can't possibly think that he can't play baseball well after breaking an arm?_ I took a deep breath. I have to stop him!

There was a loud shout and suddenly, someone burst through the crowd. I tried to look at the person who was bold enough to step out. "Sawada-san…" I muttered, recognising the person.

Tsuna immediately flustered upon realising that he had stepped out. I paused in my steps, thinking fast. Yamamoto mentioned yesterday that Tsuna was the one who encouraged him to pursue practising more. _Perhaps Sawada-san will be able to convince him. _

"If you came to stop me, it's no use." Yamamoto's expression was one of regret. "You should be able to understand my feelings." Tsuna gave him a confused look. "For someone that's called 'No-Good Tsuna' all the time… You can understand the feeling of preferring to die over failing at everything, right?"

Tsuna looked away. "No, you and I are different so…"

Yamamoto frowned. "How arrogant of the recently awesome Tsuna-sama. So you're a fine student now as opposed to me!"

I smacked my face in frustration. "Hey, Yamamoto actually thinks that No-Good Tsuna is better than him?" I heard one of the boys comment. "He must be pretty beat, man."

Tsuna quickly denied it, in an awkward, expressive manner. "Unlike you, I've never put effort into one single thing… I arrogantly told you 'effort' and such, but I've really done nothing." He then bowed. "What I said yesterday was a lie… I'm sorry!"

_What is he doing? _I fumed. _Of course practice is important, but it's in moderation. Sawada-san, tell him that!_

Yamamoto's face was grim, but Tsuna did not notice, because he continued in his soliloquy. "Saying you're so frustrated that you want to die, or you want to die because of a career-ending accident… Unlike you, I've never had those kinds of intense thoughts. In fact…" Tsuna paused. "I'm a pathetic person who would have regrets when dying… thinking things like 'If I'm going to die then I should've done it with dying will' or 'It's a waste to die from something like this…'"

"Sawada-san…" I mumbled. I doubt that any of us knew that he had such thoughts.

"So…" Tsuna was talking again. "I can't understand your feelings… Sorry," he apologised… and ran.

Yamamoto reached out to grab his shirt. "Wait, Tsuna!"

Then, the unthinkable happened. Tsuna was flung back from Yamamoto's grip, and they both fell over the fence and off the rooftop.

I screamed. "Yamamoto!" While everyone was covering their faces and screaming, I pushed through the crowd, all the way to the front. "Yamamoto-kun! Sawada-san!" I shouted. Sasagawa Kyoko, the school belle, was also standing by the fence, peering over. I ran next to her, and looked down.

Tsuna, for some reason, was in his underpants. _Where did his uniform go? _I wondered. He had caught hold of Yamamoto but they were still falling. I squeezed my eyes shut and then… there was nothing. _Huh? _I opened my eyes to find many schoolmates around me. "Wha-"

"No way!" They shouted.

"They… They're safe!"

"That's not possible!"

"Maybe it was a joke of Yamamoto's? Using wires or something?"

I was beside myself in surprise. "What… What happened?" I muttered.

"Hey!" Mr. Kimura, our discipline teacher, burst through the rooftop door. "What are all of you doing here? Where is Yamamoto Takeshi?" I vaguely heard answers and snide comments from everyone about how stupid the entire thing was and how their time was wasted.

"Sana-chan!" Yoshiko came, pulling me up to my feet. I had not realised that I was sitting on the floor in fright. "Come, time to go."

I pulled myself away from her. "Go on ahead, I'll be right with you." I stood and peered over the fence again, trying not to lean too closely to the now fragile fence. I could not see anything, now that both Yamamoto and Tsuna are on the ground floor. Taking a deep breath, I walked closer to the open parapet, making sure not to fall over when I peered over the edge of the rooftop. Looking below, I saw Yamamoto and Tsuna talking, absolutely unscathed.

"It's impossible," I murmured to myself. "… There's no way they could survive the four storey drop, even if there are wires."

What was that all about?

* * *

Indeed, what was that all about?

In case you don't know, this is from Chapter 5 of the manga. Yes, I'm back. I'm glad that you are enjoying the series, so I've decided to continue it (every end of the month!) and we'll see where this series go. In case you are wondering, yes, I will follow the manga. This story is NOT an alternate universe. I fully intend to fit my OC into the story without retconning any details or scenes.

I hope you enjoy the story! Do read and review, because that would be totally awesome for me.


	3. Sorry

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

**Chapter 3 – Sorry**

Two things were on my mind the whole day. I could barely pay attention to the teacher in class, which was never a good thing. If I want to save money and not go to cram school, I have to be more attentive in class. However, I could not. All I could think of was to go and find Yamamoto Takeshi after school.

Alas. What luck. According to some of our classmates, Yamamoto was sent to the principal's office immediately after the incident. "Does the principal really need to take such a long time to talk to him?" I grumbled, stuffing my books into my bag.

"I heard that his father was called in as well," Yoshiko said.

I made a face. "That does not sound good."

Yoshiko sighed and flipped her long, dark hair to one side of her shoulder. "Yamamoto Takeshi has really gotten himself into big trouble this time round, huh?"

"As if your idol is not being a troublemaker himself."

Yoshiko beamed at the thought of Gokudera Hayato, the transfer student from Italy. "Even when he's in trouble, he still looks so badass!"

I rolled my eyes, grinning. Picking up my bag, I asked, "What should I do then?"

Yoshiko grinned. "I say that we should go to WcDonald's or shop around first… Or maybe I'll shop around and you'll just go and wait for him at your rendezvous spot."

I made a face. "You go on ahead to WcDonald's. I'll take a rain check."

* * *

All through the day, I waited for him, to no avail. It was not until the school started closing that I gave up and walked home. _I guess I must've missed him when I was walking around the school compound. _I thought gloomily. Although I could still try to look for him tomorrow, I doubted that the feelings in my heart would be as impactful as they were now.

I was walking through the park when I heard Yamamoto's voice. _It couldn't be… _I walked briskly through the park, and saw Yamamoto, patting Muusuke on its back as the stray Akita ate canned dog food.

"Hey, Tanaka-san," Yamamoto greeted, as if he had never caused a ruckus in school earlier on today. I smiled the smallest of smiles and squatted next to him while he continued petting Musuke. "Isn't it amazing? Musuke doesn't bite even if you pet him during feeding time. I heard that dogs could get really aggressive." Musuke paused in his eating to lick his hand. "Eew!" He laughed. "Now you've got dog food on my hand!"

"I heard about what happened at lunch today," said I, in a quiet voice.

He laughed good-naturedly. "Guess you did huh?" He stood up to wipe the mess on the back of his hand off his school pants. Even though I had expected his reaction to be mellow, I could not help but feel annoyed.

"Is everything alright?" I asked, still keeping my frustration controlled. "I heard that you got into trouble because of that." I stood and stared at him. Even at full height, I was much shorter than him. My top of head barely reached his shoulders.

Yamamoto grinned. "Yeah, I got quite an earful. My old man was also invited to Mr. Hamazaki's office, but my punishment is not too bad." He shrugged. "Just a week of after-school detention and short-term counselling sessions. But all's well!"

Without a word, I flung my hand and punched Yamamoto across the cheek. He cupped his cheek and blinked at me. "Ow! What was that for?" He yelled, more out of surprise and irritation than in pain. He was probably surprised because I punched him for no reason, not because I had a strong punch.

"You… You idiot! How could you?" I said. "How could you attempt to throw away your life like that?"

"Tanaka..."

"Do you really see your life so lightly?" I shouted. "Jumping off the roof just because your arm was fractured?"

"You won't know…" Yamamoto said darkly, his voice dropping a few tones from his usual one.

"Of course I don't," I huffed. "I don't know that feeling of not being able to play because of an injury." I tried to make my sarcastic words more obvious by rolling my eyes. "I don't know how it feels to have my future changed just because I am no longer as fit or as qualified. Forgive me, I am that naïve. Still, it's not something to lose your life over! There are so much more that you can accomplish!"

"…"

The silence that he gave was worse than him retorting, in my opinion. I could not tell if he was seriously considering what I said, or just as upset with my offensive talk. "Well, if you are so proud of your baseball lunacy," I gritted my teeth. "Then die out there in the baseball pitch and not on our school grounds! Allowing yourself to die just because of a single setback?" I grabbed his shirt (not violently though). "If you are injured, it does not mean that you are gone from the baseball world. If you fail, it just means that you keep trying until you succeed," I punctuated, poking a finger at him with each phrase.

"Stop it," said Yamamoto in low tones. He waved my hand away. Seeing his usually cheerful face so serious, I almost faltered. Almost. I was not going to be shaken off so easily.

"Do you understand how lucky you are? Not everyone is as talented as you," I said. "But that doesn't mean that they give up. If this," I spread my hands at him, "is all the tenacity you have, it just shows what kind of baseball player you are." I folded my arms. "Then, you can never improve." I paused for a breath. "Everyone's trying their best at something that they desperately want to achieve… Some people just try and try, hitting and bouncing off walls and being foolish…" My voice grew softer as my words came closer and closer to my heart. "Even if they know it's impossible, even if they may never grab hold of what they truly desire… they try anyway."

Since when were my cheeks wet?

Yamamoto stood there, at loss at my sudden angry outburst that led to crying. "I'm... I'm sorry," he waved his hands in front of him. "I didn't… Oi… Tanaka… Don't…" He trailed off for a brief moment. All of a sudden, I felt something on my head and realised that he had placed his hand to pat my head. "I'm sorry." He said this time with more sincerity.

I was so surprised by his action that I stopped crying immediately. Quickly wiping my tears, I said, with my voice a little hoarse, "Don't do that to anyone anymore."

"Sorry," he said quietly. "You are right. I was selfish to think that I control my life." He sighed. "Thinking back, I definitely did not think about my dad. I don't think he would have wanted to lose me. He had always wished that I inherit his business one day."

"I think so too."

"My classmates would've been upset too. And Musuke will be too."

"So will I." Yamamoto looked at me in surprise. "We are friends, aren't we?" I said, with a smile that hopefully will throw him off-scent.

He blinked at me... And then he laughed. "You really are a good girl." He smiled.

"You ain't that bad yourself." I grinned back. "Just worry about fixing your broken arm for now. After that, let's work together to see how to get you back into the baseball game, yeah?"

Yamamoto grinned, a genuine sign that he was alright again. "It's getting late." He check his watch. "Can't believe it's already past 7." He looked at me. "Where do you live?"

I blinked at him. "Eh?"

He slung his bag over his shoulder. "I'll walk you home."

"EHHH?" I exclaimed.

* * *

I walked as gracefully as I could, trying my utter best not to swing my satchel too much. "Seriously…" I said for the umpteenth time. "You really don't have to send me home…" Oh my gosh, am I blushing still? My heart was pounding in trepidation, but it was not because Yamamoto Takeshi was walking beside me.

"What are you talking about?" Yamamoto Takeshi said with a wide smile. "Actually as it turns out, we live pretty near each other, so it's not that big a detour. It's getting pretty dark, anyway."

I bit back the real reason behind my reluctance to have him walk me back. Despite the mad, gleeful me jumping around in my heart, I would absolutely die if we met…

"Hmm? Isn't that Sana?"

My heart stopped for a moment. I closed my eyes and sighed in resignation. The worst has happened. I lifted my head and looked at the older boy in front of me. "Good evening… onii-san."

Soma's eyes could have popped out when he saw Yamamoto next to me. "No way!" He exclaimed. "Sana's got a boyfriend?"

It seemed that finally Yamamoto had gotten the direct message. He immediately clarified Soma's mistake. "No, no! You've gotten it wrong!" He exclaimed, waving his good hand in front of him. "I'm just her schoolmate!"

Just then, it started to rain. Why does it always rain whenever I am with him? "Ah! It's raining." Soma beckoned Yamamoto and I. "Come on in, you two!"

"Um… no it's okay!" stammered Yamamoto. "My house is not too far off! I'll just run home!"

As if it was in response to Yamamoto's answer, the rain became heavier.

"Ara? Soma and Sana?" I stared in horror as my mother walked out of the house. "I was just wondering where were the two of…" She paused as she saw Yamamoto. "Oh!" She exclaimed. "Are you a friend of Sana's? Come on in!"

"No, it's okay!" Yamamoto grinned. "I'll just run home!"

My mother made a face. "I insist. Don't get yourself a cold! Not when you are injured too!" She glanced at Yamamoto's cast.

Sighing in resignation, I nudged Yamamoto's back. "Just go in," I said. "You can go home once the rain stops. Besides," I added with a smile. "Don't you want to see Chisuke?"

Yamamoto's face brightened at the mention of my Akita dog. "Then I shall disturb the family tonight! Thank you!" I could not tell what the expression on his face was, but from the way he answered my brother just now, I discovered that even the clueless baseball maniac could be embarrassed by something like that.

* * *

Never in a million years would I ever imagine that I could have Yamamoto Takeshi sitting with my family in my house! I looked at my polo t-shirt and gripped my knee-length shorts tightly. My nosy brother would have teased me horribly if I dressed up a little more. It was a pretty hard balance to look presentable yet effortless at the same time. I hoped that my side ponytail will make me look cuter than usual.

Next to me was Yamamoto, who was now dry and dressed in Soma's shirt and long pants. "I apologise for taking so long to greet you and introduce myself. Pleased to meet you," Yamamoto bowed respectfully. "I am Yamamoto Takeshi, I am Tanaka Sana-san's schoolmate." I stared at him in awe. I had no idea that Yamamoto could be so polite. He must have grown up in a very traditional family.

"It's nice to meet you, Takeshi-kun," my mother smiled.

"Thank you very much for inviting me for dinner as well." Yamamoto paused, reaching down to pet Chisuke before adding with a grin, "My father was happy to not have me home tonight."

"It's not a problem. Sana's father will not return home for dinner today anyway." My mother stood from her sitting position. "I better go and check the kitchen now."

"Yamamoto Takeshi… huh?" Soma glanced at me as my mother left the sitting room. "So you are the one who lent her your jacket the other day?"

"Onii-san!" I blushed. If Soma were to say anything unnecessary, I swear I will never speak to him. Ever.

Yamamoto laughed. "Yeah! She was wet from the rain, so I lent my jacket to her."

"Well, I pity you for having to worry for my stupid little sister," Soma grinned. "I'm her big brother, Tanaka Soma."

"Tanaka Soma?" Yamamoto exclaimed a little louder than what was polite. He stopped and quickly said, "As in, that legendary baseball pitcher in Namimori Middle School last year?" He turned to me, and I could have sworn that I saw twinkling stars in his eyes. "Tanaka-san! Why didn't you tell me that Tanaka Soma was your older brother?"

I held out my hands at him in defence. "Because… I don't care about my stupid brother?"

"Still famous after graduation, huh?" Soma grinned arrogantly. "I guess some things never change." I rolled my eyes at him. "So, Yamamoto, are you in the baseball team or something? Kinda young, aren't you?"

I thought that Soma was a little rude for addressing Yamamoto directly, but Yamamoto did not seem to mind. "Yes!" He replied enthusiastically. "I am the batter of the team, although…" His gaze dropped onto his cast.

"Umm… Yamamoto-kun is the youngest member to be in the school team!" I spoke for him. "He's a really good batter, but he's pretty upset about his injured arm though…"

Soma snorted. "Is it going to stop you?"

"No!" Yamamoto said, a little too loudly. "I will not stop even with this injury!"

With that, Soma seemed to get passionate about it as well. Soma had a small history with broken bones too. He had an elbow fracture which took him out of a baseball season in his early middle school years. Yamamoto listened to Soma's story like an enraptured child and was visibly inspired by Soma's account of how he remained a baseball player even after that.

"Your bone is broken, but I don't suppose that you won't be able to play anymore," commented Soma over dinner after that.

"Really?" asked Yamamoto excitedly.

"Why are we still talking about baseball?" I groaned to my mother softly, who chuckled in response. I glanced at Yamamoto, who was given a fork and a spoon instead of chopsticks for his left hand. He looked quite comfortable, even though he was using his non-masterhand. _Maybe he's ambidextrous?_ I wondered.

Soma nodded to Yamamoto's question. "However, first things first," he said with a swish of his chopsticks. "You need to heal your arm." Yamamoto shrugged as if it was not an issue. "And I mean it. No baseball, no sports. After that, it's slow but necessary physiotherapy. You cannot do strenuous exercise, if not you will risk cracking it without even knowing." He paused for dramatic effect. "Six months."

"Six months?" Yamamoto exclaimed. "The doctor said that I should be up and ready in four." I peeked at Yamamoto, whose face was not as nonchalant anymore. "That's going to be hard…" he laughed.

My brother's response was simple. "Do you want to play baseball?" He asked Yamamoto seriously. I looked at Soma's baseball-serious face. Looking at my older brother, I suppose I can imagine why people think that he is handsome. In the eyes of everyone outside my house, Tanaka Soma is a friendly, diligent, baseball-serious high school boy. I resisted a shudder. No one but his family, and eventually an unlucky girlfriend (if he gets one), knows about the baseball-otaku, sloppy Soma.

For a brief moment, Yamamoto Takeshi was quiet at Soma's question. His hesitation did not last for long. "Yes," he declared finally. "I still want to play baseball." He clenched his left fist. "I want to play until I can no longer play. So I will not play baseball until the doctor says so."

Yamamoto's determined expression matched the seriousness on Soma's face.

Soma's face split into a satisfied grin. "That's just what I hoped." He drank his tea before continuing. "If you were going to be deterred just by this, then it's not worth my time too."

"?" Both Yamamoto and I stared at Soma.

Soma grinned. "I like your spirit, Yamamoto! When you recover from your fracture, come and find me! Six months of minimal activity. After that, on top of your physiotherapy in the hospital, I will personally train you as a batter!"

"No way!" Yamamoto was beaming from ear to ear, which was simply adorable. "You would do that?"

"Nii-san," I narrowed my eyes at him. "You have been a pitcher. Since when do you bat?"

Soma wagged a finger at me. "My ignorant sister, do you think that your brother is ONLY talented in pitching? No! I am a baseball god!" He spread his hands out in flourish.

"Good gracious," I groaned, burying my head with my hands. "You are so annoying."

"And I will make sure that you," he said, pointing his chopsticks at Yamamoto. "Will be a better baseball player despite your fracture! Ow!" He yelped.

My mother had finally made a move by smacking his hand. "Do not point your chopsticks at a guest. That was rude." She pointed out before resuming her dinner.

Soma rubbed his stinging hand and mumbled his apologies. Yamamoto laughed it off. Even I could not help but giggle at the funny sight. "So, Yamamoto, what do you say?" Soma asked again.

Yamamoto grinned. "I would be so excited to be playing with the well-known Tanaka Soma!"

"That's the spirit!" grinned Soma. "Put it there!" He extended his fist for a fist-bump.

"I'm so excited, Tanaka's older brother!" said Yamamoto happily as he extended his good hand for a fist bump.

"Call me Soma!"

"Really? Then you can call me Takeshi then!"

I stared at the two of them, my jaw dropping. "Since when are you two close enough to address each other directly like that?"

My mother smiled. "That's how boys are."

Yamamoto turned to me with a look of surprise. "It's just that I don't normally add honorifics when I talk to guys…" His face widened into an innocent grin. "If you want, I can call you Sana instead."

My face grew hot at his suggestion. The thought of him calling me in such an intimate manner was not something I was ready to imagine! "No!" I exclaimed. "It's fine!"

"Sana's blushing!" My irritating brother looked as though he had found comedic gold.

"I'm not!"

* * *

After dinner, I walked him out of my house. At my gate, he stopped to turn to me. "Thank you inviting me, Tanaka-san," he said sincerely. "Your mother's cooking is good! And Chisuke is cute! Your family is great!"

I love how, compared to the boys in my class who tried to be cool, Yamamoto is never self-assuming or arrogant. If he enjoyed something, he would not pretend that he did not. "I'll be sure to send your compliments to my mother," I replied. "I'm glad that you are not feeling upset anymore."

He laughed. "Actually, I've stopped feeling upset with myself since this afternoon. I mean, I saw how Tsuna was willing to risk his life to save me." His face sobered and was unusually serious. "He saved me with a dying will. How can I let myself be beaten up like this if there are people out there who do things as if it is the last thing that they are going to do?"

I had completely forgotten about the unexplainable incident this afternoon. "Well…" I stammered. "I don't know many people like that, honestly."

"Tsuna is one of them, I feel." He smiled. "He is amazing, and through him, I saw that I was just an idiot for creating so much trouble to all of you."

I did not reply immediately, mainly because I had many questions in my head. So many mysteries… and they somehow all involve Sawada Tsunayoshi… Could he be someone who is not as ordinary as we think?

"Yamamoto-kun," I asked. "How did you and Sawada-san survive the four-storey fall?" I looked at him. Apart from his cast, there were no further injuries. "There is no logical way of walking away that one unscathed."

"Gee…" Yamamoto scratched his head. "I'm not very sure. My mind was blank and all of a sudden, I was on the ground floor." He laughed. "Maybe it's because Tsuna's dying determination is so strong, we were able to fall without injuries!"

I was not convinced. However, Yamamoto did not seem to be even half as curious or suspicious. "I… I guess so." I sighed. "I'm glad that you are not injured further. And I'm also happy that you were willing to come for dinner, because well… you know… we are not close friends or anything…"

Yamamoto blinked. "Well, isn't it good? Now that I'm here for dinner, we have to be close friends, right?" I stared at him. Sometimes, his logic was just not something easy to understand. "Next time, I'll bring you to my house for dinner. You'll love it."

_His house? Dinner? _I beamed and nodded. "I'll be happy to." Maybe I was seeing things, but I thought I saw a brief flash of mischief on his face.

He grinned and said, "Goodnight, Sana-san!"

I waved back. "Goodnight, Yamamoto-kun!"

It was not until I had long waved goodbye to him and was back in my room that I realised what he said.

* * *

Thank you for reading.

In Japan, people usually address each other with their family names. To call each other by their given names is something that only family members, close friends and lovers would do. Yamamoto usually does not add an honorific when calling his male friends. I imagine that Yamamoto calling Sana as "Sana-san" or "Sana" is just too intimate given their current relationship. So apart from the little mischief when they said goodbye, Yamamoto will still call Sana "Tanaka-san".

You know? I tried to find a scene where Yamamoto was addressing Miura Haru or Sasagawa Kyoko in the manga… I cannot imagine him calling Sasagawa Kyoko by her name without a '-san'. However, guess what? I did not manage to find any scenes of them even talking to each other. That lack of inter-character development is one of the things that I disliked about the series. BUT… all these ranting should go into my writing blog and not here.

So I had to improvise and take things into my own hands. So he tends to be more polite with girls.

Also, WcDonald's is quite a common substitute fastfood restaurant name in shojo manga. References for the win.

Thanks once again, for your patience. Waiting for a chapter every month is not easy. Have a good week ahead!


	4. Reborn

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

**Chapter 4 – Reborn**

Since that night, it had been one week. Yamamoto had finished his after-school detention, one of the punishments given due to his attempted-suicide accident. Many of our schoolmates were concerned if he was alright. However, they quickly realised that their concern was not necessary when they saw Yamamoto behaving normally and even returning to his baseball club like usual. In fact, the counsellors discharged him from the short-term counselling sessions when they saw that he was not as affected as they thought.

As obedient and true to his word, Yamamoto stopped practising baseball, much to the annoyance of his club members. As of now, he still has a bandage around his arm. When the bandage is not needed, I wonder how he will hold off his club members.

"No worries!" He laughed when I asked him about it. "I'll figure something out."

Meanwhile, Yoshiko was pleased to hear the exciting things happening between Yamamoto and I. She was not like those typical girlfriends that will gush and say things that will over-encourage you. She often offers a listening ear and is honest with her opinions. I am saying that because despite the sudden closeness between Yamamoto and I, she never suggests that Yamamoto may be interested in me.

And I appreciate that she does not do that.

Meanwhile, I have been on pretty good terms with Yamamoto Takeshi, much to the chagrin of his fan club. Nobody knows of us and our stray Akita dog, Muusuke. Unfortunately, some people have taken notice of an unknown girl talking to Yamamoto Takeshi casually and walking out of school together on occasional Thursdays.

As of now, there were no signs of bullying. I have read too many shoujo manga titles where the protagonist becomes a victim of bullying because of her relationship with the male lead. It does make me a little uncomfortable to think that that can happen. Of which, when I bring up that possibility, Yoshiko would toss her hair scornfully and say something along the lines of the students needing to grow up.

"But if you ask me, I pity the girl that Gokudera likes," said Yoshiko.

I sat straighter at the news. "Gokudera-kun likes somebody?" I asked incredulously.

"Of course not!" Yoshiko laughed. "It's so obvious that he doesn't like girls, nor many people for that matter, which still makes me confused – What does he see in that No-Good Tsuna?"

I rolled my eyes. Here she goes again. Yoshiko hardly, maybe never, had anything good to say about Sawada Tsunayoshi. "Maybe Sawada-san has some amazing quality that not many people see – except for Gokudera-kun… and Yamamoto-kun," I added as an afterthought. "He thinks Sawada-san is amazing."

"Guess I'll never know," sighed Yoshiko. "Maybe Tsuna's amazing ability is to attract all the popular and handsome boys… and I don't mean it THAT way," she grinned cheekily when I made a face. "Back to the point, I'm just saying that I would pity the girl if the most popular boy in our grade falls in love with her."

Honestly? I have seen Gokudera Hayato a few times up close. Yes, I cannot deny that he is really handsome. However, he is so unapproachable. I would not really like being friends with him, I think.

"It's fine," Yoshiko beamed when I told her these things. "Gokudera-kun looks cool just the way he is! I suppose Gokudera Fan Club does not worry much about Gokudera falling in love – he is so resistant to girls. Yamamoto, on the other hand…" Yoshiko shook her head. "Because he is everyone's Yamamoto, it's harder for you, or any girl who tries to get closer to him."

Regarding that, Yamamoto once said that he did not have many female friends. "I guess it could be because I'm not very good with talking to girls." He laughed. "I've always been hanging out with boys. Besides, none of the girls ever said more than 'Hi', so I guess I must be really boring."

_That's not it at all!_ I thought to myself. _You clueless git, are you THAT unaware of how people see you?_

"That is why," he continued. "I was glad when Tanaka-san talked to me at the pavilion. You were one of the first few girls whom I can talk to about baseball…" He rubbed his chin. "And probably the only one who knows about Musuke."

I was sincerely glad that he did not continue his mischief of calling me "Sana" instead of my family name. I doubt I can keep a straight face if he did that.

He laughed and scratched his head. "You are probably my first female friend outside my classroom, because it's really hard to find a girl who likes dogs and baseball at the same time!"

I turned my face slightly away so that he could not see my flustered face. Baseball or not, what he said made my heart pound.

Could I… Could I hold out for any hope of a future with him?

* * *

The bright morning sun was a reminder that I had better leave the house before I become late for school. "I'm off!" I shouted behind me.

I kept to a brisk pace as I walked through the small alleys between neighbourhoods. I was humming some tune that I heard over the radio just last night. Maybe today I can finish my homework during lunchtime and I won't have homework tonight. Maybe I should stop by the park after school and visit Musuke. Maybe…

"Hmm?" I noticed a figured sitting by the high wall. Upon a second look, I realised that it was a toddler. "A baby?"

"Ciaossu," the baby replied.

"Hey, little boy." I grinned. On closer look, the toddler looked really adorable. "Who put you up there?" I lifted my hands, wanting to carry him off the dangerous wall when suddenly, a gun appeared in his hand. I widened my eyes at the toy gun, not really sure what to do.

"Don't touch me so easily," said the baby, as innocently as if he was talking about food. "I am a hitman."

I took a few steps back. How could a toddler speak so fluently? For now, I decided to play along with this toddler. "Okay, I respect your decision," I said. "But you gotta be careful." I looked at the high wall that he was sitting on. I am expecting his mother to come around and scold me for allowing her son to be in such high places. "So who are you?"

"I'm Reborn."

"Hello, Reborn-chan." I smiled. "Who are you with? Where is your mother?"

The toddler did not respond immediately. "I have been watching you, Tanaka Sana."

Okay, this is a little weird now. "Okay… am I on some kind of television show?" I glanced around me, expecting a camera crew to pop out of nowhere with equipment and banners. Another thought came to me, bigger and more important. I narrowed my eyes at the toddler. "How do you know my name?"

"Reborn!" I heard someone behind call me. "So that's where you are! Don't go running off without a single wor- Ah, you are…" I turned around and saw Sawada Tsunayoshi. Looking at his messy hair and untucked shirt, I figured he must have been looking for this toddler real hard. "Tanaka-san… right?" he asked tentatively.

I nodded. "Good morning, Sawada-san," I pointed at Reborn. "Is he with you?"

The toddler turned to me and said, "I'm his tutor."

"Reborn!" Sawada jumped and waved his arms. "Don't go around saying these kinds of things!"

I laughed. "What an interesting baby!"

Sawada laughed sheepishly. "He's… He's my cousin!"

"Oh I see." I smiled at Reborn. "I really like the outfit that you've given him… and that gun looks like a real one. I was so shocked when I saw it!"

"Reborn!" Sawada turned to him. "How could you do that? Apologise to Tanaka-san!" The toddler stood very still… suddenly a bubble grew from under his nose. Sawada groaned in exasperation. "You fell asleep?"

"Yo, Tsuna. Good morning, Tanaka-san."

My heart skipped a beat. Looking up, I saw Yamamoto. "G- Good morning, Yamamoto-san!" I stammered. I was not expecting to see him!

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna smiled at him. I ignored the small twinge of jealousy. Soma nii-san and Sawada-san could address Yamamoto-san without honorfics, why was it that I could not bring myself to?

"_Goodnight, Sana-san!" _Yamamoto's voice repeated in my head. I shook that thought out of my head. If Yamamoto and I started calling each other so intimately…

"Tanaka-san?"

I blinked and saw Tsuna, who said, "I gotta go, Reborn went missing again!" Barely registering what he had said, I nodded and waved. Tsuna smiled and ran off in a rather uncool way. I smiled. Yoshiko was right – What does Gokudera and Yamamoto see in him?

"Well then, let's go!" said Yamamoto, who was still beside me. I nodded and we walked down the road.

_Another 15 more minutes and we will reach school. _I thought._ I need to make sure that this precious conversation I have with him is fruitful!_

"How's Chisuke?"

"Huh?" I quickly recovered from my daze and replied that my Akita dog was fine. "He recently has taken a liking to lavender. Whenever my mother smells the lavender air freshener, he jumps around the house like a mad rabbit."

Yamamoto laughed. "Seriously? A dog being hyperactive with lavender? I gotta-"

"Good morning, Yamamoto-kun!"

"Morning!" He smiled brightly and waved at a group of giggling seniors who walked by us.

"You know them?" I asked.

He gave a sheepish smile. "Not really, but they are really supportive of me during the baseball games."

"Oh, your fan club?"

"Ah, Sana-san!" He said with much embarrassment. "Don't say it that way!" He laughed. "Fan clubs are a little extreme! Gokudera is the only one who has a legitimate fan club!"

I smiled at his naivety. He had absolutely no idea, but I did not want to tell him about it. "How's baseball practice?" I asked. "I know you want to recover, but the baseball team is not exactly letting you go, huh?"

"Yeah, I have to commit hours, even if I'm not playing. So it's the menial tasks now. When my arm recovers, I'll see if I'm able to hold off playing until your brother gives the go-ahead."

I grinned. "What an obedient boy."

Yamamoto grinned sheepishly. "I really want to play baseball well. I really thought that I can never play baseball again." He stopped to smile at me. "So when your family and Tsuna encouraged me, I want to believe that I can do it."

I found myself turning away in shyness. "Um, yeah…" I replied lamely. I quickly changed the topic. "So, you know Reborn? He's an interesting kid."

"I think so too." He grinned. "He has the most imaginative mind. But you know, kids nowadays, they sure have the best kinds of toys around, huh?"

"I think so too." I grinned. Phew. So they were really children's toys? I hope so. Something about that baby just does not sit right with me.

"Ah, hold still." I turned to Yamamoto, who leaned closer… to remove a speck of lint off my cheek. "There you go!" He beamed cheerfully, flinging the lint off his fingers.

I refrained clutching my heart in shock. I mumbled thanks under my breath and we reached school without further incident. I am quite sure, _kami-sama_ is trying to give me a heart attack with this clueless boy!

* * *

"I swear," I groaned. "This heat will really kill us all."

This time, I was early. I thought that I could take a slow walk to school, walking past the river near the park… I regretted it horribly. It was only half past seven in the morning. Already, I could feel my uniform sticking to my body.

A commotion by the river caught my attention. "Eh?" I widened my eyes. "Gokudera-kun?"

Gokudera Hayato and Sawada Tsunayoshi were at a small bridge arching over the river. They are fighting against somebody! I squinted at their attacker. Whoever their attacker was, choosing today to wear a full feudal armour and a motorcycle helmet was not a great idea.

_Then again, who wears such things? _I grimaced.

The attacker swung haphazardly at Tsuna with a hockey stick. Gokudera reached into his pocket and pulled out sticks.

"Explosives!" I exclaimed. _Gokudera carries explosives?_

A series of small explosions caused the attacker to fall off the bridge. Tsuna hurriedly ran to the edge, flustering as he watched the person.

"Save me!" A girl's voice shouted over the sounds of water.

It was a girl! A girl who attacked them! Tsuna was shouting, though I could not hear him clearly. I wanted to run over, but stopped shortly after I saw Reborn. "What's happening?" I could not help but ask myself aloud. Everything was not making sense.

Reborn pulled out his toy gun and pointed it at Tsuna. I watched as the baby pulled the trigger. With a loud bang, the bullet hit Tsuna's chest. Tsuna swayed with the impact. I gasped loudly. Who said that the gun was just a toy? It was a real gun!

Tsuna fell over the bridge too. "Sawada-san!" I shouted. Suddenly, he twitched and rapidly broke through his uniform.

In his underwear, he roared, "REBORN! I'LL SAVE HARU AS IF I WERE TO DIE!"

I staggered back in surprise. _What is all of this?_

* * *

I felt bad about taking off without even checking to see if they were alright. Everything was too crazy for me. I was just not as heroic, what an embarrassment.

Still…

_What was that? _I asked myself. _Did Reborn shoot a real bullet at Sawada-san? But he did not die. He somehow could save that girl… Haru, was it? I wonder if she is okay._

"She is fine."

"Thank goodness…" I sighed in relief. "EH!" I turned to the person speaking. "Reborn!" I said. I glanced around me. There was nobody around the school yard. Yoshiko was called to the teachers' room so I had to eat the rest of my lunch alone. "You!"

The baby blinked innocently. "That was quite a show you saw, Tanaka Sana."

"I…" I stammered. Why am I so uneasy around this baby? _He is just a baby._ I tell myself unconvincingly. _A baby who addresses me by my full name._ "Yes… I saw everything. What was that?" I said. "Who are you?"

Reborn smiled. "I am a hitman."

That word again. I stared at him. "You are joking, right? How can a baby be a hitman?"

The baby sighed. Despite his appearance, he has a very mature expression. The one that was on his face was as though he was the adult and I was the child.

"Please, tell me," I said.

Instead of answering my question, he posed another question. "Why are you seeking the truth?"

"Wouldn't anyone?" I asked. "I saw you shoot Sawada-san. Plus, he has been behaving oddly…" I glanced at Reborn. "I saw him save Yamamoto when they fell off the building. That… That was not normal." Reborn did not speak for a while, and I wondered if he knew what I was talking about. _He's a baby, after all. Am I thinking too much about his intelligence? _I decided to change the subject. "Want a biscuit?"

The baby took one and nibbled on it. "When it comes to things regarding Tsuna… What is considered normal, and what is not, is not something for you to decide." He popped the rest of the biscuit into his mouth. "The bigger question that we need to settle today is this…" He swiped the crumbs off his hands. "You have seen things that you should not see…" Reborn pulled out a gun from within his jacket. "What are you going to do about it?" He said, pointing it at me.

I stared at the gun. On closer inspection, it was no toy gun. It really could shoot people if he placed the correct bullets. "I should not treat you lightly, should I?" I asked, feeling a little stupid that I was treating a kid seriously.

"It would be wise not to."

Instinct told me that I should treat this kid as seriously as he suggested. I took a deep breath. "What are my options?" I asked.

Reborn smiled. "I could name a few… like moving away, or transferring schools, or-"

I raised a hand. "It's okay," I said weakly. "I'll tell you what I want to do… I'll do nothing." Reborn did not respond, so I continued. "Whatever you and Sawada-san are up to, it's not really my business, is it?"

"Indeed, that's the case." Reborn nodded. "However, Tsuna is close to Yamamoto, isn't he?"

The truth hit me. "So what?" I asked, my voice a little higher now. "Are you suggesting that I can't be with Yamamoto-kun, then?" I shook my head. "I'm not giving in on that one."

Reborn was not fazed by my rejection. "Yamamoto is part of the family now. Being involved with Yamamoto make you indirectly involved with us." It was hard to believe that such serious words are said with such a cute, nasal voice.

"What family?" I frowned. "I can't be friends with him just because you guys decided to pull him into your secret social circle?" I placed my hands akimbo. "Well, then, guess what? He will also be a part of my family then!" Reborn's baby face was incapable of making complicated expressions, but the look in his eyes did not look very pleased. I clenched my fists tightly. "Please, Reborn…" I begged. "If you had appeared in front of me two weeks ago, I would have easily agreed and gone along with whatever you say. But… to think that I finally had a chance to be his friend…" I thought about how he patted my head in the pavilion. "When he wanted to be my friend, I was really happy. I've been dreaming for so long to have a chance to talk to him… how can I give up now?" I looked at Reborn. "I will not fold."

He blinked at me. "Sorry, I dozed off a little. What did you say?"

I dropped my jaw. "Are you serious with me or not?"

He smiled. "Your fighting spirit is strong, if Tsuna has a bit of that in him, I would not have such a headache." Reborn did not lower his gun, though. "What about what you've seen?"

"I said, I'll do nothing." I nodded. "There's nothing I've learnt about or from you, anyway. I guess I won't question you or Sawada-san about what you do too."

Reborn said nothing. However, I was extremely glad that he returned the gun back into his jacket pocket. "It's a promise."

"It's a promise," I echoed, relieved. "Ah!" I gasped as the school bell rung. "I haven't finished my food… eh?"

The toddler was gone.

* * *

There you go, I've finally introduced the main character of the canon series. I had my apprehension as to how to best portray Reborn. He is not my most favourite character, to be honest. I worry that I will make him out of character, or not cute enough. Anyway, if you are wondering his role in my story, you'll just have to guess and figure and hope your way through!

This chapter may also likely be the only chapter where Tanaka Sana, Tsuna and Reborn will be in the same place at the same time. In the canon series, Tsuna and Reborn are virtually together from the middle part of the Daily Life Arc onwards. It would be unrealistic to have my OC with Reborn AND Tsuna together.

Also, to all my reviewers and followers, thank you VERY MUCH for your reviews! Honestly, I have not been receiving much that I kinda forgot my usual routine. To those receiving thank you mail two or three months after you've followed me, my biggest apologies and thanks!

Makototachibaena: I'm glad that you enjoyed the story so far! I'm updating every end of the month so don't give up on me! Hehe!

CryingMoonLight: Thank you for your kind review! With monthly updates, do try to continue being psyched by the story!

I see you see: I like to write about Soma too! I don't have plans for him but I would like to beef up his character more, if the chance ever presented itself!

Thank you and have a great weekend!


	5. Sports Meet

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

As the title of the chapter suggests, the events of the story occurred in Chapter 17 and 18 of the canon storyline. Enjoy!

**Chapter 5 – Sports Meet**

I clutched my bag tightly against my chest, replaying my plan and contingencies in my head. I hoped Yamamoto would accept my bento lunch. The previous time when we made riceballs for home economics, I did not dare bring my riceballs to Yamamoto. Later, I heard that Sawada Tsunayoshi did some crazy act of eating everybody's riceballs. Yoshiko was upset and offended – she had taken much pains to save a good riceball for Gokudera Hayato. I did not tell her this but I was secretly glad that I did not send my riceballs over that day.

_Today, I will give this to Yamamoto-kun instead! _I told myself.

The sports meet in Namimori Middle School is always done by teaming up the classes across the levels. So first, second and third years from Class A will form one team, Class B and Class C will also form respective teams. The leader of our team was Takada-senpai, a tall and bulky guy who talked arrogantly. I did not like him much, but at least he was good at allocating roles to each of us.

"Go for it, Sana-chan!" Yoshiko shouted.

I wiped my sweaty forehead, glancing at the beam in front of me. I pushed myself off the ground and made a dash towards the thin beam hanging above me. With a spring, I jumped and arched my back over the beam. I smiled when I felt no contact and landed on the soft cushion with relief.

"Hurray!" Yoshiko and some of my classmates cheered as I returned from my high jump section. "That was great! You still had some height to play around with!"

I grinned. High jump was one of my favourite sections in competitive sports. There was a tap on my shoulder, I turned and heard my classmates squealing behind me.

"Ya… Yamamoto-san!" I blushed.

"Not bad, Tanaka-san." he grinned.

"Um! … all the best for your event too," I mumbled, wishing I could speak louder. He gave a wave before running off.

In an instant, my classmates were upon me.

"Since when are you so close to Yamamoto Takeshi?"

"Are the two of you going out?"

"You have to introduce him to us!"

I widened my eyes. "Cut it out!" I laughed. "We are not going out! We are just friends!"

"Attention," a teacher announced over the public system. "All participants of the 400m-race, please proceed to the counter to get your bibs."

I turned to Yoshiko. "Yamamoto-san is competing in this event! Shall we go and watch?"

Yoshiko made a face. "I don't want to watch Yamamoto-"

"But we do!" My classmates cut in. "Come, Sana-san! Let's admire Yamamoto together!" Pulling me away, they chattered endlessly about his athletic achievements. I smiled. Last time, I would listen in with much admiration. However, I realised that I interact with Yamamoto a lot more than before. Now we are on fairly close talking terms, something that he rarely does with girls from the other classes. I admit, it feels good.

Somewhere, deep in my heart, something ached for more.

* * *

I grinned to myself as I watched Yamamoto Takeshi pick up his speed at the last bend and sped ahead of the other competitors. He reached the finishing ribbon first and the crowd cheered.

"I can't believe it!" said my classmate, Nana. "He even beat the people from the track and field team."

My other classmate, Yayoi, laughed. "Oka-kun is not going to be happy later," she said, thinking about our classmate in the track and field team.

Yoshiko yawned and stretched herself. "When would it be lunch?" She wondered aloud.

"Yoshiko!" I turned to her and made a face. "It's Sports Day! You should be more enthusiastic, shouldn't you?" I gasped. "Did you take photos?"

She half-rolled her eyes and patted her camera. "I did. What would Yamamoto say if he found out that the shy little girl that he made friends with recently, secretly take pictures of him like a stalker?"

I coloured. "Don't you dare, Matsugawa Yoshiko!"

"You know," said Nana as we walked away from the track. "You still have not told us about how you know Yamamoto Takeshi."

"Exactly!" echoed Yayoi. "Weren't you just standing by the classroom blocks staring at his baseball practices from afar?" She narrowed her eyes. "How did you cross that distance in such a short while?"

"Um…" I began. I was not going to tell them about him actually noticing me at the classroom blocks too. That would incur such a reaction. "We just happened to meet by coincidence and had a chance to talk."

Nana shook her head in disbelief. "Sana-chan, you are quite shy. It must have been some divine opportunity."

I giggled. "Actually, it was baseball."

"I thought so," sighed Yayoi. "Your family, including your hot brother, are into baseball. It's easy to see why Yamamoto and you became friends."

I sighed in relief. It seemed that they were going to drop the issue. "I guess so. But it could have happened to anybody. Yamamoto-kun does not reject anyone who talks to him."

"She's right," nodded Yayoi. "Whenever we say hi to him, he will always wave back cheerfully. What a big difference to Gokudera Hayato…" she squealed. "But I like them both!"

"Hey!" said Yoshiko. "You gotta get in line, Yayoi. Gokudera is mine to admire!"

"As if you are the only one admiring Gokudera…" smirked Yayoi. "It's a challenge enough to even see him around school. He's always sleeping or skipping classes. When you do see him, he snaps at any girls who approach him."

Nana sighed. "Gokudera-kun and Yamamoto-kun, both are the hottest guys in our grade. We are so lucky!"

"Oi," said Yoshiko, turning around. "There's a commotion over there."

We walked towards the spot where the crowd was gathering. "Gokudera-kun and Sasagawa Ryohei-senpai… and Takada-senpai!" Yayoi exclaimed when she recognised the people in the centre of the commotion.

"What's happening?" I asked one of my classmates, Oka.

The track-and-fielder pointed. "Gokudera and Sasagawa-senpai both punched Takada-senpai!"

"What?" I exclaimed.

"Oi!" cried the crowd of Team C students. "What did you do our leader?"

I peered over and saw the big burly senior sprawling on the floor and shuddered. If the both of them could take down such a big person easily… _They are dangerous!_

Sasagawa Ryohei and Gokudera Hayato stood cracking their knuckles. "Anyone who has a problem," Ryohei said. "Bring it! Sasagawa of the Team A will take it!"

Gokudera declared in a deadpan, "I'll pick any fights from you anytime."

I could have sworn I heard Yoshiko sigh dreamily. I shook my head but before I could say anything, there was a shout behind us.

One of the second-year seniors from our Team C came running. "O… Oshikiri-senpai, the leader of Team B, was attacked by someone in the bathroom!" As the murmurs grew louder, he continued, "According to the witness, it was done by someone in Team A."

"What is happening?" said Nana, looking at us with concern. "What's with Team A?" We could not give her an answer.

"That's cheap, Team A!" cried the students of Team B, among many other nasty remarks.

I searched around me, looking for Yamamoto Takeshi, hoping that he would be able to clarify. However, there was no sign of him. The crowd was getting rowdy until a school announcement broke everyone off for lunch.

"This is bad…" sighed Yayoi. The atmosphere was tense and everyone was giving dirty looks at the equally irritated Team A students. "I understand that cutting down people will help Team A for the pole-knocking event later, but…"

Yoshiko stretched. "The team leader is that No-Good Tsuna, isn't he?"

"Really?" gaped Nana. "Who put him as leader? I thought that he's bad at everything?"

I winced. I still did not like how people talk about Tsuna like that.

Yoshiko shrugged. "I know he's bad, but I wouldn't have thought that Tsuna would resort to such underhanded tactics!"

"No!" I shook my head, surprising my friends. "I don't believe that Sawada-san is like that!" I took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. Turning to my classmates, I said, "I'll… I'll be right back! You guys go ahead for lunch without me!"

"Hey!"

"Don't bother, Nana," said Yoshiko with a grin. "She'll be fine."

* * *

I found Yamamoto Takeshi, alone at the foyer. He was lying on a stone bench, with an arm over his eyes. Clutching the bento tighter in my hands, I leaned over and said, "Boo."

"Ah-" The arm moved away, revealing brown eyes. "Hello, Tanaka-san," he said, smiling.

I lifted my bento bag. "Want to have lunch together?" I asked. "I made extra today so I thought we could eat together."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Yamamoto happily. He sat up and made space for me to sit on the bench. Sitting so close to him, I felt my face burn up. "Ah, I forgot. Tsuna's mother and the others made bento for me too."

"Ohh…" I looked down at my bento. "I guess…"

"No, no, no!" laughed Yamamoto. "I'll still eat your bento!"

"But…"

He grinned. "You found me first, so I will eat yours first, right?"

I beamed. That is how awesome Yamamoto Takeshi is. Now that he was actually interested in my bento, I suddenly felt a little embarrassed to show him. I carefully opened the bag and passed him one box. Opening my own box, I examined the contents. A tamago-yaki, two onigiri, fruit slices and fried bacon strips… it should not be a problem.

"Looks good!" said Yamamoto. "Well then, I'll dig in!"

As it turned out, you can never go wrong with bacon, even though my mother always thought that bacon was not suitable for bento. However, my tamago-yaki was too soggy. "That was embarrassing!" I covered my face. "You don't have to eat it, you know?"

"Why not? It's not bad as you think."

I grinned happily. I never thought that receiving praises from him could be such a wonderful thing. Previously, he praised my pitching skills… _But I really do not want to be recognised for anything baseball._ I thought. "Oh, did you hear what happened with Sawada-san?" His blank face was a good enough answer. I quickly filled in the details of what had happened. "Sawada-san is not that kind of person, is he?"

"Of course not!" laughed Yamamoto. "Tsuna is a good guy!"

I sighed in relief. "I thought so too. Then what should we do to clear this misunderstanding?"

He took another bite out of the onigiri. "We don't have to do anything. Don't worry!" He laughed. "Tsuna will be fine!"

_I seriously doubt that. _I thought to myself.

Approaching footsteps caused me to look up quickly. "Ah, Tanaka-san!" A familiar voice called me.

"O- Oka-kun!" I stammered, blushing to the roots of my hair. Why, of all places, must I see my classmate? I mean, there were lots of students walking past us, but nobody paid much attention to us.

Oka's face was a complete I-understand-what-is-happening-now look. "Opps, I guess I should not disturb you." He chuckled to himself.

"It's not- Hey!" I shouted but Oka had skipped off.

"Your classmate?" asked Yamamoto.

I laughed nervously. "Yeah. I guess it's not normal for a guy and a girl to eat bento together."

"Really?" asked Yamamoto innocently. "But I see people do it all the time." I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "Isn't that one pair over there?"

I turned my head and watched a girl feeding a boy affectionately. _That clueless baseball-maniac! _I thought in exasperation. _Isn't it obvious that they are a couple? _"I surrender," I mumbled to myself.

"What's that you said?" he asked again. I shook my head vigorously.

A distant bell rang, indicating another school-wide announcement. "Thank you for waiting. A decision has been made in the pole knocking debate. Upon debating with the representatives, this year's pole knocking will be Team A versus a union of Team B and C!"

"What?" I exclaimed. "That's not fair!"

"Oh," remarked Yamamoto, as if he was listening to the weather forecast.

I turned to him. "Aren't you shocked by the news? Class A is at a disadvantage!"

"It's not that bad, is it?" He scratched his head. "Isn't it fine? Since Class B and C are both angry with us, we might as well confront them together." He shrugged. "It saves time."

"As if that is the concern!" I sighed. Talking sense into this person was harder than I thought. I wrapped up our empty bento boxes. "I'll talk to the others and see what's happening," I declared. I shoved my empty box to him. "You handle this," I said.

I walked away from a still clueless Yamamoto. It was not hard looking for where everyone was, since all classes were gathered in the light of the change in the rules. I scanned the crowd, looking for something or someone to begin. Then, I spotted Takeda senpai. He was strutting around and giving instructions to the juniors. If there was anyone to start with, I should start with the leader.

Easier said than done. I felt my heart thumping madly against my chest as I walked towards him. I straightened my shoulders a little and called out his name. Behind me, I vaguely heard my classmates calling my name in surprise. "I'm… Tanaka Sana from Class 1-C. I heard that you were injured… Are you alright?"

Takeda blinked. "Um… Yeah! I'm totally good and ready to go!" He laughed in a silly manner that reminds me of Soma when he talks about some girl that he has a crush on. "To think such a sweet kouhai would care for me like this… I'm a little flattered, hahahaha…"

"If that's the case, can you go and ask the teachers to remove the Team B and C union?" I asked. "It's not fair for them. If we were at a disadvantage against Team A and B union, I don't think you will be happy just sitting here."

"Hey, first year," growled one of the second year seniors. "Are you on our side or not?"

I pursed my lips this time, deciding that keeping quiet would be better.

A voice behind me spoke up. It was Oka. "Don't mind Tanaka-san, she's only got eyes for Yamamoto. That's why she's speaking up for Class A."

I spun around and glared at him. "That's not the reason!" I protested. "It's just not fair!"

"If Class A wanted it fair, they should not have beaten our leader!"

"That…" I could not argue. Indeed, Sasgawa Ryohei and Gokudera both punched Takeda senpai. "That should mean disciplinary action for them. However, their actions should not affect the sports meet regulations!"

Takeda rubbed his chin. "I can consider that, but there is a condition." He leaned closer to me.

I instinctively pulled back. "… W… What?"

"I like your guts. Since I'm injured by your precious Class A…" I narrowed my eyes at his choice of words. "If you want me to consider going to them to change the rules… you need to make me bento every day… and eat lunch with me together."

I dropped my jaw. "Are you serious?"

"Senpai!" The boys are speaking up too. "What do you see in that average looking girl?"

"I don't want that!" I exclaimed. "If you want bento… I can make for you, but to eat with you…!"

Takeda grabbed my arm. "But I thought that you want me to do something… right?" I tried to squirm out of his hold but it was useless when he was such a big person.

Suddenly, Yoshiko appeared beside me, holding me by my other arm. She raised an eyebrow at Takeda.

"Yoshiko-san!" I exclaimed.

Takeda immediately released me. "It's… It's Matsugawa from the Photography Club!"

"That's right," she said with a deadpan. "And if you don't want your photos to be circulated, you let her go."

I looked at Yoshiko. She was two years younger than Takeda, but Takeda was behaving a little fearfully. Sometimes she can be as intimidating as Gokudera. _What kind of photos have you been taking, Yoshiko? _I made a face.

"Yeah, sure…" he mumbled. He jabbed a finger at me. "It just means that the request is off!" Yoshiko cocked her head a little and regarded him as though he was a little boy. Takeda gulped at her gaze. "… A-Anyway! It wasn't me who suggested it. Class A suggested it themselves!"

"What?" I exclaimed. "Who?"

"Sasagawa Ryohei," answered Takeda, pointing to the general direction where Class A was gathering. "And… And even if I had the power to change the rules, I won't! So you better give up that idea. We will thrash Class A!" With that, he walked away quickly before Yoshiko could threaten further.

"Forget about them, Sana," she said quietly. Pulling me away from the unhappy stares of the Class C students, she added in a low voice, "You can't do nuts about it. The pole knocking event has already been decided that it will be so."

"What is everyone thinking?" I hissed. "And Oka-kun!" I covered my face with embarrassment. "He just announced to everyone about my feelings towards Yamamoto-san!"

Yoshiko shook her head. "That idiot. How does he know anyway?"

"I…" I lowered my head in embarrassment. "He caught me eating bento with Yamamoto-san."

"Ah, I see."

"What should I do?" I sighed. "It's clearly at a disadvantage."

"Maybe you should try believing in Class A that they can survive Class B and C union."

"But I don't want people to get hurt."

"You mean you don't want…" Yoshiko did not finish her sentence and was looking behind me.

Almost immediately, I felt a pat on my head. "Ya… Yamamoto-san!" I exclaimed when I turned around.

"You ran off so quickly!" He grinned. "Here's your bento boxes," he said, passing me my bag. I took it over quietly. Looking at Yoshiko, he smiled, "Are you Matsugawa Yoshiko?" Yoshiko nodded and stretched a hand out for him to shake. "I'm Yamamoto Takeshi, pleased to meet you!"

Yoshiko gave a small smile. "Thank you for taking care of my Sana." She peered at him closely. "You are handsome, but I'm not interested in you, Yamamoto Takeshi," said Yoshiko with a smile. "I'm more interested in Gokudera."

My jaw dropped. "Yoshiko!" I exclaimed.

"Oh, Gokudera?" He laughed cheerfully. "I see, I'm not surprised. He's really popular."

I shook my head to myself. It would be hard to believe that he was sincere about his words unless you hear him yourself. Turning back to Yamamoto, I asked, "Are you going to be okay?"

"Don't worry about us, whatever odds we have, we will overcome." He laughed. "See you later!"

As he walked away, Yoshiko shook her head. "He's an idiot. A nice idiot, but still an idiot." She glanced at me. "I pity you that he has officially placed you in the not-a-friend-not-a-lover zone… and he's not even aware of it."

I sighed, not denying the truth of her words. _Please be alright, Yamamoto-san._

* * *

"How did it end up like that?"

That was me, angrily dabbing at an open wound with a wet cotton ball.

Yamamoto winced at the pain. "Easy, Tanaka-san." He said with much discomfort. "If you are going to attack all my wounds like that…"

"How does a normal pole-knocking event become a school-wide fighting scene?" I demanded. "Thanks to you guys and your lack of understanding in cause and consequences, the whole school was made to stand in the sun for an hour while Mr. Hamazaki railed on us on our moral conduct!"

The last jab was too much for him to handle. He recoiled and clutched his knee. I regretted it a little, just a little. "Sorry," I squeaked. "Are you alright?" He waved it off casually. "Seriously…" I mumbled, more to myself than to him. "Always surrounded by really dangerous people…"

"Really?"

I looked at him, blushing. I did not realise that I had spoken my thoughts so loudly. "Yeah, it seems," I admitted.

He laughed. "But Tsuna is a good guy, and Gokudera is not too shabby himself." He looked at me with a smile. "Tanaka-san is not a dangerous person, either! If she is, she wouldn't be tending to my injuries now."

I quickly looked away before he could notice that I was blushing. My gaze fell upon the lone figure walking away from the field where most of the students were still sitting around.

It was not hard to spot the leader of the school's discipline committee. Hibari Kyoya always wears his blazer without putting his sleeves through. When he walks, his blazer would flutter against the wind like a cape. The sight of him was enough to strike terror into the hearts of everyone. There are all sorts of rumours surrounding the mysterious boy, but none of them were ever proven true. Whether he single-handedly took all the delinquents in the school under his wing, or whether he has been given permission to not attend lessons at all, one thing is for sure…

_Nobody would dare to oppose Hibari senpai. _I thought.

"What are you looking at?" Yamamoto asked, breaking me from my thoughts.

"Oh…" I pointed at Hibari. "I was thinking of Hibari senpai. It's rare to see him so enthusiastic about the pole-knocking game… to even volunteer to be the leader of the B and C union." I sighed. "He seems like a really scary person though."

To that, Yamamoto gave a dry laugh. "About that…"

I looked at him seriously. "What?"

"Well… Tsuna, Gokudera and I ran into a bit of trouble with him the other day…" He gave a sheepish smile. "The rumours saying that he fights a lot are not false."

"You fought with Hibari senpai?" I hissed.

"Hey, that girl over there," someone in the distance called out. "You are not going to only tend for one person, right? We need first aid over here too."

I blushed. Why were there so many people noticing my interactions with Yamamoto? Then again, like what Yoshiko once said, I was not being very subtle about it. I responded and felt a glare somewhere in the midst. _Hmm? _Looking around the crowd, I felt the glare disappear. I rubbed my arm. _Was it my imagination?_

Yamamoto nodded. "I'll be fine, Tanaka-san."

I nodded, a little upset that I could not talk to him more. However, I was in charge of one of the first aid kits, and there were more students to tend to. Taking a deep breath, I said, "Yamamoto-kun, please don't fight like that anymore. It… It makes me really sad when you get hurt." Even though I know he would not understand my message, I still feel embarrassed saying these words.

He smiled. "Thank you, Tanaka-san. I'm glad to have a friend like you. I'll take note not to fight so easily."

I half narrowed my eyes at him. It was the first time he addressed an issue somewhat directly. "Yeah, I'll get going then…" I waved and ran off, not knowing that somewhere in school, someone was still watching us…

* * *

Thank you for reading.


	6. Sushi

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

I am very sorry for making all of you wait for this chapter. I had mental blocks and gaming distractions.

**Chapter 6 – Sushi**

"Musuke!" I beamed, opening my arms for the stray Akita to run towards. The dog sniffed my fingers and nudged against them affectionately. "I'm so happy to see you too!"

Usually, I am the first one who would be at the pavilion with Musuke, waiting for Yamamoto to join us after his baseball practice. Today was different. Yamamoto was already at the pavilion waiting for me. It was such a precious sight, I could not help but squeal on the inside.

"Tanaka-san," he asked. "Are you free tonight?" I looked up in surprise. "Want to come to my place for sushi?"

"Eh?" I exclaimed. "Why tell me on such short notice? Why the sudden invitation?" My face felt hot. It sounded as though he was bringing me home to see his parents!

He shrugged. "Your family treated me to dinner a while back, right? I thought it'll be great if we could do the same to you. My old man's been bugging me to invite you."

I flustered and mumbled, "Yeah, let me give my family a call…" I reached for my phone while Yamamoto continued to play with Musuke. It was Soma who picked up. "Onii-san? Sana here… Could you help me ask Mom if I could go to Yamamoto-kun's house?"

"…" Then, I heard Soma shouting over the phone. "Mommmm? Sana is going to her boyfriend's house for dinner!"

"Soma!" I shouted. "Stop saying the wrong things!"

A while later, I heard my mother's voice. "Ah, Sana, it's alright. You can go to your friend's house for dinner. Be home early."

"Thanks, mom."

I hung up and nodded at Yamamoto Takeshi. He grinned. "Alright! Shall we go?" We picked up our bags and made our way to his house. "What did Soma do to you that made you so angry just now?" He asked.

I blushed. There was no way I would tell him that Soma called him my boyfriend! "Nothing much, he's just being an annoying brat."

Yamamoto laughed. "That's funny, considering that you are the younger sister. The two of you get along well."

"In a weird way, we do." I looked at him. "Do you have siblings?"

"Nope, I'm the only child. Just my father and I."

"Oh…" I immediately understood that he did not have a mother. Thinking back about my family, I was glad that I had everyone, even my irritating brother. I wondered how long he had been alone with his father, how did he manage to stay cheerful after that, but the words could not come out.

Yamamoto changed the subject for me. "I'm very happy when Soma said that he would personally train me for baseball!" He clenched his right arm. "Even though the cast is off, I'm trying my best to refrain from vigorous activities."

"How's the baseball club taking it?"

"They are cool for now, because it's not the competition season. Once the year starts, we will start gearing up in preparation." He laughed. "By then, my arm would be way past the six month recovery. Hmm?" He turned his arm and peered at it closely. "There's a funny bump over here…"

Without thinking, I leaned over too. "Where?"

The both of us brought our faces close to his arm… _Our faces are really close! _I immediately jerked my head back… so did he. "Maybe it's better if we look at it under brighter light!" I quickly commented to explain my awkwardness.

"Ah… Haha! You're right!" He laughed nervously. "My house is just around the corner! Let's go!"

As he walked ahead, I clutched my heart at my chest tightly. Was that… Was that him being embarrassed too?

* * *

As it turned out, our houses were really close to each other. It was approximately a fifteen-minute walk from his house to my house, but our houses were in different neighbourhoods, so we had to walk around a canal before reaching his place.

"I've never been to this part of town before…" I remarked as I saw his shop house. At the front of his shop, the large sign "Take Sushi" (A/N: Take Sushi is pronounced as "Tah-keh Sushi", not "Take" as in take away) was written over traditional curtains hanging from the main entrance. "The park is closer to my house than yours though."

"Yup! But I prefer to jog in the park. That's how I first met Musuke anyway. Give me a moment." He entered the entrance first. "We're back, pops." He peered out of the hallway at me. "Come on in."

I greeted the house greeting (A/N: Refer to end notes) and entered the shop. The shop had the look of a regular sushi shop. An open counter that houses different types of raw fish in the cold glass display, the kitchen right behind, a bar counter for customers who want to sit closer to the chef, and wooden tables and chairs around the ground floor. The sign on the wall states the credentials of the cook, Yamamoto Tsuyoshi.

Before I could take a closer look, a man appeared from the kitchen. One glance and it was easy to tell that the man was Yamamoto Takeshi's father. They both had similar features, from the sharp almond-shaped eyes to their side smiles.

The man grinned. "You must be Sana!"

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Yamamoto!" I bowed. "I'm Tanaka Sana, thank you for inviting me to your house."

He laughed. "It's good to see you finally! Takeshi has told me so much about you over the last few weeks!"

I looked at him. _Did he?_

Yamamoto Takeshi laughed. "Yeah, of course! She's a baseball fanatic like me too!"

I sighed inwardly. It is Yamamoto Takeshi that we are about talking here. Why was I expectant for something different?

Yamamoto Tsuyoshi looked at his son. "Do you want to take a shower first?" He gestured at me. "I'll take care of her while you're away."

Yamamoto Takeshi grinned. "That'll be good!"

I nodded. "See you later, then."

As he disappeared up the staircase, I suddenly felt a little awkward. What am I going to say to his father?

Well, luckily his father had things in mind. He beckoned me to the side of the restaurant, where I saw many photo frames hanging on the wall. There were pictures of a much younger Yamamoto Takeshi, donned in baseball uniforms. In every picture, he was grinning that sunny smile that I adore so much.

"Is that Yamamoto-kun in middle school?" I asked with a smile.

"That's right." His father nodded. "It seemed as though he only played baseball and nothing else. Surprisingly, I only have pictures of him in baseball uniforms." I looked at him in surprise and he chuckled. "The other day, some of his high school friends came by again and I went to find his photo albums."

I looked up. "Oh? You mean Sawada-san and Gokudera-kun?"

The man nodded, touching the photo frames. "They had so much fun looking through them. I thought it would be nice if they are up on the wall instead of inside the albums. I've got plenty of space in the shop to hang them up, after all."

I stopped myself from making a face. If my mother hung my pictures everywhere in the house like some like of hall of fame, I would be dead embarrassed to bring my friends over. "I bet you must've faced a lot of resistance from Yamamoto-kun in order to put them up."

His father blinked at me. "Not really, he seemed just as excited." He laughed. "But that's how he is, I guess."

I smiled. Indeed, that was Yamamoto for you.

There was a short silence before his father continued. "I'm glad that he has friends outside his baseball club. In middle school, Takeshi's always hanging out with his baseball friends. I was worried that he'll never find a girlfriend."

I flustered for some reason. "You won't have to worry about that," I said, my voice a little squeaky. "He's very friendly and likeable. He has a lot of friends."

"Really? I'm glad. Since he entered high school, he had not brought back any friends. I was worried that he was not coping well in high school."

I smiled widely. "It's not true at all, Mr Yamamoto! Yamamoto Takeshi-kun has been a friendly figure." I rattled on, glad to share with someone about my favourite person. "He talks to everyone without discrimination and everyone likes him! On the field, he's doing his best, even though he had broken his arm…" I trailed off… _Did I talk too much again and give myself away? _I resisted smacking my forehead in resignation.

I glanced at the older man. He was busy slicing raw fish and did not look like he was paying much attention to what I said. I hastily took a big gulp out of the warm green tea. Then, he commented, "You know, Sana, this is the first time he has brought a girl home."

I blinked. "Really?"

When he looked up at me, I saw that he had a knowing smile. "My son is a little stupid in that department, so you have to be more patient."

I dropped my jaw. How did he know? I swear, everyone can tell. Soon, the school janitor will probably know about my feelings, but Yamamoto Takeshi will still be as clueless as a brick! "I… I…" I stammered. What do I say to someone whose son I am interested in? Technically, he will be my father-in-law if we ever – oh gosh, Sana, you are thinking too much now –

His father laughed. "Come by to play whenever you feel like it, okay?" He reached for an empty plate. "My shop and house is always available for friends of Takeshi."

I blushed. "Th… Thank you…"

"Hmm?" I heard Yamamoto Takeshi's voice from the top of the stairs. "The two of you seem to be having lots of fun. What were the two of you talking about?"

"Noth- Nothing much!" I squeaked while Yamamoto's father chuckled to himself.

* * *

Dinner was lovely. Yamamoto's father's shop was open through the night, but I had free sashimi amongst many other luxuries. The biggest luxury of them all was that Yamamoto Takeshi sat and ate dinner with me. No one else joined us, except for his father occasionally when he could spare the time. Can you imagine that? Dinner, just the two of us!

When we were done with our dinner, Yamamoto looked a little embarrassed. "Actually, there aren't many things in my house." He laughed. "It's not like we've got a dog to play with, or anything like that."

"What do you do at home, then?" I asked, sipping my green tea.

He turned behind, to the counter where his father was at. "I help him out with the restaurant." He turned back at me. "But you don't have to worry, you are our guest, so I'll keep you company."

I glanced at his father. "Your father looks busy." I showed him my hands. "My hands are free. Let's go help out!"

He made a face. "I can't have you doing that!"

I waved it off casually. "I've always wanted to try working in a restaurant!"

Sometimes, I wish I did not open my mouth to say such flippant things. Working in a restaurant was hard work. Not that they gave me difficult jobs to do – I only needed to wash the dishes… but there were so many plates to wash.

"You look like you need help," remarked Yamamoto Takeshi cheerfully as he walked in with more empty plates. "Maybe you can be our stand-in waitress instead of washing our dishes." He laughed. "I feel bad for making you do these."

"Well, I insisted on washing them…" I said, though not as confidently as I was half an hour ago.

He chuckled. "Don't worry, I'll come and help you."

"No, it's okay!" I stuck my hands into the sink full of soapy water to make my point.

"But this is my house!" He protested. He stood next to me dumped his empty plates into the sink of soapy water. "You should go and rest, I'll do it." Suddenly, I felt a hand grab mine. My face turned red. Yamamoto must have mistaken my hand for a plate under the soapy waters! He immediately released his hand. "Sorry, Tanaka-san! I thought…" I waved it off lightly, but my head was spinning with excitement.

"Umm… You know," I began lightly. "You're right. Maybe I should go rest. I need to go home soon anyway!"

He nodded, a little too quickly himself. "Go ahead, I'll send you back later."

As I walked out of the kitchen, I slumped back into one of the booths. Working in a restaurant may be fun, but not if I need to work with Yamamoto Takeshi. I would not be able to last even a single day without getting a heart attack!

* * *

His father personally walked us out of his shop. "Do come back whenever you are free," he said with a wide smile. "Takeshi's friends are always welcome."

I bowed. "Thank you for having me here," I said, followed by the formal greeting.

"I'll be back," Yamamoto nodded at his father.

We left, continuing in our discussion at our dinner table earlier. When we seemed to have reached an end to that, I said, "Your father is such a nice person."

"He's alright. Your family is friendly too, isn't it?"

I sighed. "Not my brother, he's nice to everyone but me."

Yamamoto laughed. "Soma is not that bad. He's probably closer to you, that's why he's able to put down his guard when he's around his family and be something that others do not know about." He paused. "… the real him."

"You seem to know him well," I said, a little put out that he thought so much about Soma nii-san.

He grinned. "We are similar, maybe… Not that I'm saying that I'm very good at baseball!" He quickly added. "Soma is really good at baseball!"

"You're not that bad," I assured him.

He laughed. "I hope so."

"Your father really adores you." I grinned. "Don't you find it embarrassing that your dad is hanging your pictures around?"

Yamamoto laughed. "Not really."

"No way!" I giggled.

"I guess at first it was embarrassing, but I've gotten used to it. You know, my father is my buddy and my father at the same time. If something as trivial as hanging my pictures on the wall makes him happy, I'm all for it." He took a deep breath. "That's why my father was really upset with that suicide incident. He is watching over me a little more closely now, but I don't blame him for it." He laughed. "I deserve it, after all."

I looked down and did not reply. Yamamoto had such a close relationship with his father, because his mother was dead. He tried to accommodate his father by spending time with him and not being immature with his father's affection… _What about me? _I asked myself. _What have I done to show my family that I treasure them? At least I have my father, mother and even irritating Soma nii-san is around. I have not lost anyone. All I cared about was how embarrassing Soma nii-san was, and how my father and mother could be less worried about me all the time…_

_I'm such a kid. Maybe more of a kid than Reborn-chan._

"Tanaka-san?" I looked at him. "We're here." He nodded. He glanced downwards.

"Yeah…" I agreed. "Sorry for not replying, I kinda spaced out."

"No, no," he said. "I didn't mean to give you such weird talk about my father." Again, he glanced down. "I hope you are not offended or anything."

I waved. "I appreciate you telling me those. I had some thinking of my own to do too." His eyes followed my hands, trailing down when I put them down. Has he been doing that the whole time? I looked down and saw my hands. Was he looking at my hands the whole time?

I clenched them and he quickly said, "Goodnight, Tanaka-san!" He greeted cheerfully.

I nodded. "Thanks for having me over for dinner." For once, I did not turn around. I dashed straight into the house, where my parents and brother were.

"I'm home!"

"Welcome back, Sana!" My mother smiled warmly.

"How was dinner?" asked my father.

Soma looked up from his game. "Have you confessed to Yama-" I shut him up by throwing a cushion at him.

I ran to my parents and hugged them. "I… I just want to tell you that I'm glad you're my family," I mumbled. "Be careful when you're at home or at work."

"S… Sana?" my mother asked in surprise.

I ran over to my brother. He looked at me with genuine fear in his eyes. "What… What are you-"

Before he could finish, I hugged him as well. "Thanks for being such an annoying brother."

"… Is that even a compliment?" He grunted.

I looked at the three of them. "I'm going upstairs!" I beamed. "Goodnight!"

Upstairs, I quickly showered and lay on my bed. I stared at my hands with a blush. Was he… was he thinking about my hands after our hands touched in the water? I hid my face under the covers. _I should not think about it too much._ I told myself. _Go sleep, these excited feelings will be gone tomorrow._

Yet, the feeling on my hand lingered.

* * *

The next morning, I reached school without getting a glimpse of Yamamoto. _Oh well, _I thought. _Maybe I'll get to see him at the pavilion._

I opened my shoe locker, ready to take off my outdoor shoes for the indoor ones. There was a piece of paper taped at the top of my cubbyhole.

"Yamamoto belongs to everyone, go and die!" It said in scrawled, vengeful handwriting.

I took a deep breath. Then, I pulled out the paper, crumpled it and closed the door. I looked around me. There was no one in sight. I looked at the ball of paper in my hand and closed my fingers over it.

It has begun.

* * *

(A/N: A special scene just for you… in Yamamoto Takeshi's POV! This happened after he sent Sana home.)

"So hot…" I grumbled as I switched on the lights in my room. Helping dad to clean up the restaurant is a daily routine, so I wonder why I bothered to shower I came home today. Cleaning up the restaurant often required another shower after that.

Of course, I knew the reason why. Tanaka Sana was coming to my house. It would not be such a nice thing to have a girl having dinner with me, drenched in perspiration from baseball practice. At least, that was what dad nagged at me the night before. I could not see why there was a difference. Tsuna and Gokudera probably could not care less how I look or smell. I could not be bothered too.

Then again, I knew nothing about hanging out with girls. Tanaka Sana is a cool girl, so if there ever comes a time where I need to be friends with other girls, maybe she can help me.

_She seemed pretty embarrassed that I was looking at her hand just now. _I sighed._ I guess she should. It's not normal to stare at people's hands. _

I shook my head at myself. I really suck at being friends with girls. Boys are so much easier.

_Tanaka-san really has small hands though. _I lifted my hand and stared at it. _So different from mine. She's at least three size smaller than my glove size. _For a girl with such a small stature, only one question bubbled from within.

_How can such a short girl throw such a good pitch?_

* * *

Poor Sana. While you were hoping that he was thinking about holding your hand, all Yamamoto was thinking about was BASEBALL!

What Sana meant when she said that she did the house greeting was "Ojamashimasu." It literally means "I'll disturb (Yamamoto's) house." It's a culture in Japan to say that but I found it hard to translate that cultural part of the conversation, so I narrated it in the end. Also, at the end, you are supposed to say "I've disturbed (Yamamoto's) house" but again, it's quite unnatural in English, so I had to improvise.

A little note on the shoes scene. In Japanese schools, students had to change from their outdoor shoes to their indoor ones. They would walk around the school compound in their indoor ones and there are lockers for them to put their shoes in.

Thanks to my reviewers. To answer someone's question, no, Sana will not be a part of the Vongola family, not like she would join the others as guardians. I'm following the canon storyline, yo? How involved she would be is still quite hazy in my mind, so I guess you just have to keep reading! I may take some time to upload, but I am working on the story still!


	7. Support

**Can I Stay By Your Side?**

This chapter is dedicated to yesitsjennifer, for pointing out my mistake in Chapter 6 that Yamamoto is still in middle school. I kept thinking that he is in high school. I am such an idiot.

I will not make any amendments to Chapter 6 but I'm clarifying it here. Thank you for being my extra pairs of eyes!

**Chapter 7 – Support **

It was seven in the morning. I opened the classroom door and scanned the classroom quickly. Nobody was around. I switched on the lights and walked towards my table, sighing at what I saw.

The rag and small pail was just on top of the classroom cabinet. I left it there yesterday and the day before… and the day before that too. I filled the bucket with water and began scrubbing at my desk… removing traces of poster colours and ink. The ink faded into a light blue tint on my wooden table. It was not visible after scrubbing it really hard.

"Ink today… huh?" I mumbled to myself when I was done. "Ink is trickier to remove than food scraps and poster colours…"

I sat down at my table and rested my head against the table. How long would I need to tolerate all this?

* * *

The lunchtime crowd in the canteen was just like usual. I had forgotten to take my bento today so I was queuing with the other students in school. I yawned, thinking of Musuke and considering luring him into my house so that we can give him a good bath…

When I entered the classroom, Matsugawa Yoshiko looked at me and her expression changed. "What happened to you?" She demanded.

There was no need to deny. Damage was made and it showed on my face. I tried not to move my lips too much, resulting in a slur. "I fell." She raised her eyebrows, daring me to continue the lie. "More like, someone shoved me and I rammed head-first against the pillar."

She shook her head. "Them again?"

I shrugged and placed my bread down. "Don't say it that way… We don't know if it's them anyway."

"This is ridiculous," said Yoshiko. She took my handkerchief and soaked it with water. Beside me, classmates asked if I was alright. I nodded with thanks. As they walked away, Yoshiko looked at me. "It could be anyone." She passed me the wet handkerchief. "I'm going to accompany you everywhere you go now."

"Previously, I would reject you, but I would kind of appreciate that now." I smiled and grimaced as my cut lip ached.

Yoshiko saw my actions and shook her head again. "Are you really not going to tell Yamamoto-san about this?" She asked.

"About what? That I've been bullied by anonymous people because he's too darn good-looking and popular?"

"It is his fault that you are being targeted," pointed out Yoshiko. "He needs to have some self-awareness."

I lifted a hand at her. "It's not his fault. He does not need to know about these things. We are not… _lovers_…" I whispered the last part. "Telling him to take care of me would be just… unnatural."

"Not really, considering that he kept going on about what a good friend you are and how he has invit-"

I covered her mouth with my hand. "No!" I hissed. "It's bad enough that I…"

Yoshiko nodded and I quickly removed my hand. "Sorry about that," said Yoshiko quietly. "I won't tell."

I squeezed her arm. "Thanks for being so concerned for me. Right now, I can still take it." I said assuringly. "But it would always be good if you are around to accompany me." I grinned.

Yoshiko said that she would try, but I know that it was hard for us to be together all the time. She had her after-school club activities to go to. I was not in any club, preferring to have the time to myself.

_Well, another two more weeks and it'll be the winter holidays again. _I thought to myself. _If I can fend for myself for two more weeks, I'll deal with this again when I return to school._

* * *

In the last two weeks, I thought that I could not take it anymore.

My stationery went missing. If my indoor shoes were not dirtied by soil, they would have disappeared in the morning anyway. I no longer had injuries, but the ghost nudges did not stop. My textbooks were intact, thankfully. Whoever that was the mastermind had enough sense to cover their tracks to prevent detection from the teachers… if I had dared tell the teachers.

None of the adults noticed about the bullying. Truthfully, I knew that if I were to speak up, the teachers would help. However, it was my fault. I was a little embarrassed to tell a teacher about it.

"I'm not an elementary school kid," I grumbled to Yoshiko. "I can handle this on my own."

"You sure are handling well on your own," remarked Yoshiko sarcastically.

On the last day of school, I opened my cupboard and found my indoor shoes. They were wet. I sighed. In another eight hours or so, I would not need to worry about these things. At least, not for another two more weeks.

_Suck it up, _I ordered myself in my mind.

"Is everything alright?"

I jumped at the sudden voice. Turning around, I saw a girl of my age, with short chestnut hair and big brown eyes. "I'm okay, Sasagawa-san!" I replied.

Sasagawa Kyoko covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh! You know my name!"

_How can we forget the name of the belle of our level? _I thought. "Well, you are quite popular," I explained.

"Really?" She mumbled to herself.

_Classic. _I thought again. _Those typical popular girls in the movies who do not know how attractive they are. _Sometimes I wonder if they were trying to behave like that on purpose._ Why doesn't the fan club find trouble with her?_

Of course, I stopped myself from entertaining such horrible thoughts anymore. It was not fair to think such things just because of my predicament, especially not after Sasagawa Kyoko was nice enough to ask if I was alright.

"Kyoko?"

"Ah! Good morning, Hana!"

I looked behind me and saw a tall and slender girl with long, wavy hair. The girl looked at me and then at Sasagawa Kyoko. "What happened?"

Kyoko answered with a bright smile, "I was just asking her if she was alright because she looked so upset."

"I'm really fine, though," I hastily added.

Hana looked at me again, before noticing my shoes in the shoe locker. "Her shoes are wet." She pointed out.

"It's… It's alright," I muttered. "I'll just buy them again before lessons start."

Hana pushed me away gently to look at the indoor shoes. "You won't do this to your own shoes, would you?" She asked me, to which I did not reply. "Are you being bullied in school?"

"Bullied?" gasped Kyoko. "Why would anyone bully you?"

I shook my head. "I think I know why, but I am just jumping into conclusions." I closed the door and walked towards the shop. Kyoko and Hana followed along.

"How long has it been going on?" asked Kyoko.

I recalled the very first time it happened. The warning note in my shoe locker. It all started after I felt that glare in the sports meet. _Since then…_ I counted in my head. "About two weeks. There were other stuff too, but so far, I'm fine."

"No! You're not!" Kyoko pulled my shoulder gently. "How can anyone who is treated like that be fine?" She asked. "If you don't have friends, then you can be friends with us!" She declared. "When school reopens after the new year, you can hang out with us!"

I stared at her, now feeling really awful for thinking those things about her. She was a really nice person to talk to. Now, it was hard to reject Sasagawa Kyoko when she had such an expectant smile on her face. I stammered, "That would be-"

Kyoko clapped her hands with delight. "Actually, we can hang out during the holidays too!"

I raised a hand. "It's okay… Thank you for being so thoughtful. I still have one or two friends so I'm alright."

"Exactly," agreed Hana, knocking Kyoko on the head. "You did not even give her a chance to speak."

"Oh." Kyoko looked slightly abashed by Hana's words.

"I really appreciate it, though. I mean, you are offering to be my friend without even knowing my name!" I quickly added.

Kyoko grinned. "True! I do my best to support my friends. And I consider you a friend now." She gestured at herself. "You can call me Kyoko." Pointing at Hana, she said, "And she is Hana! What's yours?"

I beamed. "My name is Tanaka Sana. You can call me Sana. Thank you for your kindness."

They were really friendly. In fact, they accompanied me to buy my indoor shoes. By the time Yoshiko came to school, she was relieved to find me surrounded by Hana and Kyoko. Hana and Yoshiko knew each other from their elementary school days, so introductions were quickly made. It was lovely to be able to hang out with friends without worrying when I would be harmed next.

* * *

"I'll be heading to the toilet," I told Yoshiko. She insisted on accompanying, to which I happily agreed.

The corridor was crowded with chatty students flitting from classroom to classroom to socialise. I was tense, walking past the classrooms. I tried not to show it on my face and talked to Yoshiko normally.

We were nearing the staircase where the toilets were located. Suddenly, Yoshiko cried out as she tripped. I was about to turn to check on her when somebody gave me a hard push from behind.

I struggled to keep my balance but it was futile. I was falling – off the stairs – with nothing to hold onto. In that instant, I thought about three things – how high the staircase was, how bad my injury would be and an image of Yamamoto with his arm in a cast.

_At least I would know now how it feels to have a broken arm too._

I tensed my shoulders and readied my heart for impact. Instead, I landed on a person of a much bigger stature. Whoever that caught me, caught me nicely, but the impact of the fall made us both topple behind and fell over. "Ow…"

The voice made me jump out from where I was lying from. "Ya- Yamamoto-kun!" I squeaked.

"Oi, oi, oi…"

I looked beside him and saw Sawada Tsuna and Gokudera Hayato. It was Hayato who was shaking his head.

"Are the both of you alright?" asked Tsuna anxiously.

I could barely speak. "I…"

"Whoa… what happened?" Yamamoto asked. He struggled to get himself up so Tsuna pulled him up by holding his arm. "You just came out of nowhere." He laughed at me. Even though I had enough sense to scramble myself out of his arms, it showed on my face that I was still stunned from the entire thing. "You hurt anywhere?" He asked me, swiping dust off my hair. I blushed at the contact.

"Sana!" I heard Yoshiko call for me from the top of the stairs. A small crowd had gathered by her, peering down at me.

I waved at her. "I'm alright."

We walked up the stairs. Behind me, I could hear Gokudera taunting Yamamoto, something about a right hand. Yamamoto laughed in response. _They seem to be in good terms, _I thought. _Yamamoto's father need not worry about Yamamoto having no friends outside his baseball club! _

We could also hear girls squealing at the sight of Yamamoto and Gokudera. Even Yoshiko had a dreamy look on her face whenever she glanced at him. I could see why. Apart from having such exotic light-coloured hair, Gokudera had sharp features. He was indeed handsome, there was no doubt about it. I sneaked a glance at Gokudera, who looked royally pissed off with the unnecessary attention. Ironically, his irritation made his handsome face more attractive.

"I'm glad that you and Yamamoto are fine," said Tsuna with a sigh of relief.

I thanked Tsuna and looked at Yoshiko who was standing at the top of the stairs. "Are you alright?" I asked. After all, it was because Yoshiko first tripped over something, though that made me lower my guard for the mysterious saboteur to push me off the stairs.

Yoshiko nodded. "I didn't see who did it," she whispered apologetically. I waved it off.

"Yamamoto-kun!" The girls thronged about the baseball player. "You must have been so shocked!"

He laughed. "Thanks for your concern, I'm really fine. Tana-"

"I mean, that girl appeared out of nowhere!"

I blinked and tried not to react with that statement. Yoshiko made a face but I shook my head at her. There was no need to kick up a fuss over biased statements like that.

Gokudera yawned. "This is so boring." Turning to Tsuna, he said, "Tenth, I'll head back to class." Some girls, seeing that their idol was leaving, turned to follow, but a group of girls still remained.

Yamamoto laughed, a little more forcedly now. The girls could not see his discomfort. "Tanaka-san's probably more-"

"Yeah, what's with her?" Some of them even turned around to shoot me a dirty look. I tried to keep my face neutral. "She had no idea how much inconvenience she's causing Yamamoto-kun, with his arm just recovered…"

I rolled my eyes and began to walk away. "Let's go, Yoshiko," I muttered. I was not going to stand around and watch people blame me for being pushed down the stairs.

"Wait, everyone!" Yamamoto cut in pretty loudly. His sudden firmness in his tone made the cooing girls silent. "I'm really fine. Let's not worry about me now, alright? I mean, Tanaka-san fell _down _the staircase. I think she should be in more pain, right?" He smiled at them.

His grin had an immediate effect on the girls. "Of course!" They chorused. I walked away quickly, to Yamamoto's confusion.

"Tanaka-san!" cried out Tsuna.

One of the girls said in a voice loud enough for me to hear. "Who does she think she is, walking away after Yamamoto-kun showed such concern?" I rolled my eyes again, even though she would not be able to see. I was a little disgusted with the girls, going with the flow of things just because they wanted to look good in front of Yamamoto.

"You sure you want to just walk away?" asked Yoshiko, who followed behind me.

"Better to go now than to attract even more attention because Yamamoto chose to check if I was injured," I muttered under my breath.

Yoshiko flipped her hair and grinned at me. "Admit it though, you were happy."

I paused. The girls may be sneaky in their strategies to leave a good impression, but then again… _I am no different, _I thought to myself. I turned to Yoshiko with a small smile. "As happy as I can be," I admitted.

* * *

I waited for him, because I knew that he would come. I did not have a pocket mirror with me, so I quickly smoothened my shoulder-length hair and hoped that at least I do not look so messy.

Musuke, the stray Akita dog, sat by my feet and whined a little. I squatted next to him and patted his head. "I've gotten you something yummy," I said with a grin.

"Tanaka-san."

I gasped and turned around. "Hello!" I said, a little more chirpier than I would have liked. "It's nice to see you again, Yamamoto-kun."

Musuke always preferred to go to Yamamoto whenever the both of us are around. The stray dog trotted happily to the boy and Yamamoto patted it affectionately.

"Are you hurt?" He asked. "You walked away before I could ask."

I nodded. "I am fine."

"Tsuna said that you fell down the stairs very suddenly. Like you're being pushed down."

"Um…." I hummed. "I'm not sure about that, but I'm fine now. That's good enough."

"So are you really not injured anywhere?" He asked again. I shook my head and he smiled. "As long as nobody's hurt, all is good."

I kind of wished that Yamamoto was a little more pushy about the topic, but it was just like him not to probe. "Wasn't there someone who wanted to jump a few months ago?" I teased.

He laughed. "That's old news." Musuke nudged him with his brown head. Yamamoto stroked its fur affectionately.

It seemed that he was not going to continue in that direction and I felt awkward for bringing it up. I stared out of the pavilion, at children riding bicycles and making happy sounds. "Sorry," I mumbled.

Yamamoto turned to me with a smile. "What for?" He asked good-naturedly. I smiled back. "So now that it's the holidays, what plans do you have?" He asked.

My heart pounded at the question. Was he going to ask me on a date? If only. I giggled to myself. "I have no plans, actually. Probably just stay at home, study, help around the house and so on. What about Yamamoto-kun? Did my brother say that he is helping you with your training?"

The boy grinned. "Yeah! Soma called to ask if I would be free during the two-week holiday."

I felt my jaw drop. Soma and Yamamoto had exchanged numbers? _Onii-san, you are horrible! _That would be what I would say to Soma later, because now I was very jealous. I bit my lip and fought the urge to blurt, but I could not resist.

"… it too."

Yamamoto looked at me. "Pardon?"

I glanced at him shyly and held out my handphone in my hand. "Your number… I… I want it too…" I mumbled. "You know… just in case?"

He chuckled. "Of course!" He grinned. He took my handphone and entered his number. My heart was fluttering. It was weird to be so excited, since Yamamoto had already considered me a friend.

"I'll tell you first though," he said when he was done. "I don't use it often."

I chuckled. "It's alright."

* * *

When I reached home, I went to Soma's room. Whenever he did not have baseball practice, my brother would be home early and reading his comics in his room. I wonder if he has any social life outside of baseball. I also wonder what kind of girlfriend he would have, if he ever settled down for one.

He looked up at me. "You're back."

"Yeah, I'm glad that it's the holidays again," I mumbled. I resisted the urge to pick up a brush to brush out his messy hair.

"Uh huh…" He went back to his comic book again, but soon looked up once more. He narrowed his eyes at me. "If you are still hanging around here… you have other agendas." He took a deep breath. "I'm guessing it's Yamamoto."

I laughed sheepishly. "I heard that you would be seeing him often during the holidays because you will be training him."

"Uh huh."

"And that I didn't know you two exchanged phone numbers."

Soma gave me an incredulous look. "If you want his number, I'm not giving it to you. Ask him yourself!"

"I just did," I answered quietly.

My brother looked at me in a new light. I could tell. "I didn't think that my shy sister would do something as bold as that," he remarked with a smirk.

I huffed. "It's nothing much. And anyway... that's all." I raised both my hands. "I just wanted to confirm that you are seeing him during the holidays."

"And you're not?"

Irritating as my brother may be, Yamamoto was right. Soma and I are close siblings. I trust my brother with my feelings and my thoughts. He may tease me and annoy me with his unnecessary opinions, but he will never betray my feelings to an outsider. It was something that I realised ever since I went to Yamamoto's house and saw the relationship between his father and himself. I needed to treasure my family more, especially Soma.

I pouted. "Yeah, I'm not. I've no reason to. I'm not the one practising baseball with him, you know." I sighed. "Don't worry, you have fun with him. I'll prepare lunch for the two of you and stay out of the way."

Soma grinned. "What are you talking about? I am your big brother! Do you think I would be such an idiot to practise baseball with Yamamoto without asking you along? Of course you are coming!"

I stared at him. "Really?" I asked.

"Why not?"

I threw a brush at him, which he expertly caught. "You know, you need to brush your hair, so that more girls will be charmed by your pretty hair and pretty personality." I grinned.

A look of annoyance crossed his handsome face. "Do not use the pitching skills that I've taught you to lecture me!" He warned, but there was a smile on his face.

* * *

The chapter is longer than usual, as my apologies for not updating the story for the last two months. I have been busy with some preparations.

To be honest, I have not written much since this chapter was done and I doubt I will be able to upload new chapters until February 2016. I feel awful because just four months ago, I was saying that I would upload every month. Nevertheless, there are major changes in my life and I need some time to adapt to my new lifestyle which will probably last till mid 2016. I seek your understanding and hope that you will still be around to support me when I am back.

* * *

I must thank everyone who had supported me by following or favouriting my story. I had no idea just how many people did that until a week after Chapter 6 was out. Also, my biggest thanks to my reviewers. If I have never thanked you in my previous six chapters, I am an idiot. Thank you for being so supportive with your encouragement and constructive feedback.

missharia: Thanks for your enthusiasm! Yes, she won't have flames and all that nonsense. My fic is a soppy shoujo-romance fic with roses and sparkles in the background, if you know what I mean. Besides, I suck at battle scenes, hehe.

blob80: Thank you for taking the time to write such a long review. It has been four years since I wrote first-person narrative, so I was a little unsure. However, the story could not really be brought out through third-person, so here's hoping it will work out. I really appreciate your pointers, especially the one with the full name (fourteen times!).

pearl246: Thank you very much! To answer your question, Yamamoto referred to Sana as, well, "Sana-san" instead of his usual "Tanaka-san". Yamamoto was just being cheeky since Sana was surprised that Soma and Yamamoto were ready to call each other on first-name basis.

In Japan people do not address each other by their first names. Doing so is seen as an intimate action, between family members or lovers, which explains why Sana was so embarrassed recalling it in Chapter 4. Hope that helps!

Marie Yoshina: Thank you for your support! I'm sorry that I have to disappoint you but I hope you will remember me when I return to continue this story!

yesitsjennifer: Many, many thanks! I cannot believe that I've missed out such an obvious mistake! I'm glad you enjoyed my story!


End file.
